


Love Bites

by Laurahollisinatardis



Category: Carmilla (Web Series)
Genre: F/F, Fluff and Smut, Hollstein - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-08-07
Updated: 2015-11-03
Packaged: 2018-04-13 12:10:50
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 14
Words: 35,642
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4521435
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Laurahollisinatardis/pseuds/Laurahollisinatardis
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Carmilla turns Laura into a vampire after Laura sacrifices herself to kill the dean and save Silas. Will Laura be able to adjust to these new conditions or will she be forever (and yes, FOREVER) grateful for Carmilla?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This takes place when Carmilla would be sacrificing herself but instead Laura does. So no Hollstein. Yet C; Enjoy, Cupcakes...

Laura slowly opened her eyes, a slight fuzz shielding them from where she was. Her head felt heavy and groggy. She closed her eyes after several attempts to focus them. With every beat of her slowing heart, Laura felt the dull thump deepen behind her swollen eyes. She lay in complete silence aware of a very heavy weight on her chest. She felt broken. With every breath, she felt a piercing stab somewhere in her ribcage. Her whole body ached as if it had been ripped apart. Especially the stabbing pain that anchored itself onto Laura’s throat. What the hell happened?

Determined to know what the fuck had happened to her since she appeared to have no recollection at all, Laura tried to move. Just an inch or two just to feel if it were that bad. She forced her hips to the side and immediately recoiled. Her face scrunched up and she squeezed her eyes tighter, swallowing the moan of excruciating pain searing through her entire body. It was that bad. 

She tried everything she could to get a sound, any sound to make its way out of her dry, cracked lips. A small squeak squeezed its way out but earned no response. Maybe if she knew where she was, she could get a better idea as to how to reach for help.

She opened her eyes again, this time slower to ensure her vision. Thick, groggy fog danced over her pupils causing her head to pound harder. Laura blinked rapidly to clear them but felt a new pain. It engulfed her eye, puffy and swollen. She knew she had somehow developed a black eye but she ignored the throbbing, blinking once more.   
The pain slowly built but Laura pressed on, gritting her teeth. When she could finally see into the world in which she lay, she suddenly gasped despite the growing agony. She was in her dorm, on her bed at Silas University.

Suddenly all of the events from her previous state of consciousness reeled in her mind like a movie. Her heart beat wildly and the only thing she managed to scream, despite all of the distress, into the hollow room was, “Carmilla!”

 

The only voice that returned her tattered scream was her own, echoing off the walls of the room. Carmilla where the fuck are you? Laura tried to adjust herself on her bed, ignoring the shockwaves of pain ripping at her body, to look around. Her head felt heavy and the searing heat increased on her neck. 

The blankets on Carmilla’s bed were still disheveled and half hanging off the side. She hasn’t been back here. Laura’s eyes darted to the buttery yellow pillow that was infamously slumped against the shelf behind the bed. It was really bright in contrast to the darkness of all of Carmilla’s things. Too bright. So bright, it seemed to be glowing. Laura’s ragged breath caught in her throat as a flashback hit her hard.

“Laura get behind me!” Laura side stepped out from behind the dark haired girl. “No, Carmilla, I can’t let you just sacrifice yourself.” She was crying. Thick soupy chokes came from her throat and tears drowned her face. “Carmilla, I won’t let you…” Carmilla shook her head reaching out her hand to push Laura back to safety. But Laura jumped out of Carmilla’s reach, yanked the sword from her hand and dove in front of her. “Carmilla Karnstein, I love you!” And she did what any other 19 year old blinded by love for a broody 335 year old vampire would do. She thrust her elbow back, shoving Carmilla to the dusty ground. Blinded by tears and ignoring Carmilla’s screams she ran forward as fast as her short legs would carry her, sword held high. The blazing light swallowed her as she drove the sword into the heart of the pit. And then inky blackness. And then nothing.

 

Laura’s heart was pounding and panic swelled in her stomach. Here she was, safe in Silas. But if she had driven the sword into the big pit and stopped Carmilla’s evil mother, the dean, then where was Carmilla? And why was she here? 

A deafening ringing snapped Laura from her thoughts as she jumped from the spook. What the hell? It came from somewhere behind her and Laura gasped registering the sound. My phone! 

With as much strength as she could muster, she plucked it from the shelf behind her. She flipped it open and pressed the small green button. Laura placed the phone to her ear and held her breath. 

Laura? 

“Perry?” Laura managed to choke out.

Oh, thank god. Are you okay, where are you?

“I-I don’t know. I’m…I’m in my dorm…Where’s Carmilla?” Her voice faltered at the formation of the dark haired girl.

Well…

“Perry.” Laura demanded, tears spilling from her eyes and dribbling down her chin. “Where is she?”

…No one has seen her Laura. Not after you went after the Dean. There was a big explosion and everyone thought you were dead…I…when the smoke cleared we…there was nothing. Just a gaping hole. 

Laura felt her world crash as millions of thoughts raced in her head. Had Carmilla died in the explosion? Did she fall into the pit? Would she ever see her again? They were too much for her.

Laura?

She sensed her cell phone drop from her sweaty grasp and just like after she had sacrificed herself, she fell into empty blackness. 

 

Laura felt a sticky warmth pooling in her mouth when she had reached consciousness again. It was met with a powerful metallic tang that flooded her tongue and tickled her nose.   
She opened her eyes to see where the odd taste was coming from but gasped when they met the familiar soy milk container pressed against her lips. This caused Laura to choke a bit on the strange liquid sliding down her throat. 

“You okay, Cupcake?

Laura froze in the middle of her coughing fit. Her dark eyes traced the hand holding the milk container up to the figure handling it. “C-Car...” she wheezed, some of the scarlet liquid trickling down from the corners of her lips. Carmilla was quick to brush the paper towel that was clenched in her hand over Laura’s mouth. “Shhhh, Creampuff, you’re very weak right now. Just get back to drinking the blood and-” “Blood?!” Laura managed to gag and took a swipe at the milk container in Carmilla’s hands. It went soaring to the other side of the room and landed with a plop, drenching the carpet. Perry would surely have a fit. 

“Laura, what the hell?” Quick as lightning, Carmilla dropped to her knees rescuing the spilling carton. “’Laura what the hell?’ Don’t you mean, Carmilla what the hell? Why are you pouring blood down my throat when I could be potentially dying? And where the fuck have you been? What kind of a sick prank is thi-“ The soy milk carton slammed back into her mouth and she tried swatting it away. “It’s not a prank, Laura, it’s me trying to save your fucking life.” Carmilla hissed, frustrated with the small girl.

Eyebrows furrowed, Laura refused to open her mouth, blocking the now sickly sweet blood from trickling in. “Laura, I swear to god,” Carmilla wrapped a hand around Laura’s cheek tilting her head up. Slowly, she replaced the container to the broken girl’s lips. Laura, on the other hand, still utterly disgusted with the thought of someone else’s blood in her mouth, quickly stuck her head out to the side like a toddler refusing to eat their broccoli. 

“What do you mean you’re trying to save my life? How the hell does shoving a container of A positive down my esophagus deliver me from potentially becoming dirt for the gardening club?” She mumbled, feeling less of the ache in her bruised body.

“Because, Laura,” Carmilla growled, growing desperate, “It helps rehabilitate vampires quicker.”


	2. New Heights

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> How does Laura feel about being a vampire? FIND OUT BELOW MY POPTARTS

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Whoa, I didn't expect so many hits omg. You Creampuffs are amazing C:

“Okay, maybe for you but…” Laura trailed off, her brain registering her roommate’s words. She slowly reached a shaky hand to her neck and traced over the throbbing wound. Her breath caught in her throat when she brushed them over what felt to be two small gaping holes. “Oh my god, oh my god, oh my god!” Panic flooded Laura’s stomach and sweat thickened on her brow. Her heart raced as she looked from Carmilla to her scarlet soaked clothes from where the blood had dribbled from the milk container. “Carmilla, seriously, what the hell?”

“Look, Cupcake, you can knock your pissy attitude off so I can save your whiney ass,” She glared, her grip tightening on the milk container. “Or you can sit here and become an appetizer for any of my mother’s remaining minions.”

Laura glared at the other vampire, her eyes cold. “So you basically used me for a human juice box, while I was DYING, just to save yourself and now you think you’re doing the world good by turning this around to help me?” While Laura’s eyes glowed frosty, Carmilla’s burned with rage. “Before you go around accusing me of being a fucking monster, I suggest you let me tell you the whole story. But you know what?” Carmilla’s fist tightened and the soy carton exploded, the blood thickening on the carpet. “After that little outburst, I recommend looking in the mirror and seeing which one of us is truly the monster.” Carmilla ripped her leather jacket from her bed and stormed out the door leaving a dumbstruck Laura to only watch her exit.

 

Even with all the lingering pain from whatever the hell had happened, the pain from watching Carmilla leave hit her the worst. Tears welled in her swollen eyes but she bit them back with a choke. Carmilla had only being trying to help her…maybe. She thought she knew who the dark haired girl was; a monster who turned out to be…well…not a monster. And if Carmilla HAD turned her into a vampire, which she was pretty sure she did as she ran her tongue over her growing fangs, she DID need the blood to survive.

Strength returning from the small amount of blood Carmilla had forced into her, she rose off her bed and made her way to the small refrigerator. Upon opening it, she discovered with a heavy sigh that there were no more soy cartons…which meant she would have to go after Carmilla…and not just for the blood. 

She backtracked to her bed with a small towel and placed it over the blood soaked floor. This way if Perry happened to stop by to check on Laura, she wouldn’t have a heart attack and add to the mess that was already her dorm room. 

She grabbed a thin gray sweater and threw it on over her drenched chest, following her roommate’s actions. Now if I were a vampire, she thought, then shook her head starting over. If I were Carmilla, where would I go? She racked her brain of anywhere the vampire would go raging off to. The roof!

Laura zipped down the hall, her shoes squeaking a bit on the linoleum floor. Dim lights cast her running shadow next to her as she raced incredibly fast. A few papers fluttered past, ripped from their stapled spots on bulletin boards here and there. At last she saw the neon EXIT sign blazing over the set of double doors at the end of the corridor. 

She gave the doors a heavy push and faltered when her legs buckled. She was losing her energy. She gritted her teeth thinking only of Carmilla and before she knew it, she was standing in a soft breeze. It enveloped her in an icy hug and she shivered looking around for a way to the roof. A custodial ladder leaned coolly against the side of the dorm building. Laura bounded over as fast as her strength would allow and heaved herself up the first couple of rungs. 

“Car…Carmilla?” Laura called, her head spinning from her energy deficiency and the cold dancing through her sweater. She paused straining to hear anything. But even if she had developed super hearing from her roommate’s bite, it didn’t seem to be working right now. Or Carmilla could really be that quiet. 

Laura swayed a bit on the ladder and her heart caught in her throat. She had already climbed about twenty feet and didn’t feel like adding another injury to her very, very, long list of them at the moment. Steadying herself, Laura reached another hand out noticing how pale her skin had developed. Either it was really cold outside, she was converting into a vampire this quickly or she was about to die from blood deficiency. 

Finally Laura’s hand wrapped around the icy bricks at the top of the structure and she hauled her bruised body over the edge. She thumped onto the concrete hoping to hell that Carmilla was up here because if she wasn’t, then the flame for Laura’s chances for survival would be extinguished. Once again her eyes became misty with both pain and tears. She now realized how fucked up she had become when she was yelling at the only girl risking everything to save her. Laura didn’t begin sobbing because she thought her life was going to end. She cried for the girl she had left distraught and hurt. “I’m so sorry, Carm,” she whispered, salty tears sliding to her lips. “I’m so sorry.”

The ground suddenly shook beneath her and Laura flicked her watery eyes up, meeting those of the girl she loved. She clenched her jaw, tears spilling and gasped between sobs, “Carmilla, please I’m so sorry, I-” Carmilla silenced her immediately and grasped Laura’s face in both of her hands. “Laura, listen to me.” She searched the stubborn girl’s chocolate eyes, praying that this time she would have enough sense to listen to her. “You need to bite me.”

“W-Wha?” Laura shifted as her body became laden with a numbing twinge. “Carm, I-I can’t.” Her head was swimming with fuzziness and kept doubling Carmilla with each passing second. Carmilla took one of Laura’s clammy hands and rubbed her thumb softly over her knuckles. “Yes you can, Laura, it’s okay.”  
She heaved the small girl up gently by her armpits, from her laying position and sat her on her lap. Laura’s head lolled a bit to the side and Carmilla stroked her soft hazel hair away from her pale face. “Laura, please…” 

Laura glanced up drowsily and then back down at Carmilla’s neck. She never wanted to hurt the vampire but if she didn’t do it now, all of her chances to be with Carmilla would dissipate. She raised her head to the base of Carmilla’s neck and opened her mouth breathing labored spouts of hot air onto her skin. Sloppily, she sunk her foreign fangs into the flesh of her roommate, feeling Carmilla flinch under her. 

The sensation was unfamiliar but marvelous. Laura sucked the warmth into her frigid body, all of her senses coming alive. She could hear Carmilla’s heart beat quicker each time she inhaled a sip of the vital fluid. Her hands wrapped more securely around Carmilla’s shoulders as she slowly lapped at the blood trickling from the bite. Any thoughts about how gruesome it was drink any form of blood was quickly replaced with a strong lust for the sickly sweet stream.

Sinking her teeth in a little bit more, Laura let out a low moan from the descent. She felt Carmilla stiffen underneath her but then the small prick of the vampire’s nails digging into her sweater. Laura continued swallowing the flaming heat growing hotter herself. White hot flashes pulsed through her body and by the heavy gasps coming from Carmilla, she knew she was enjoying it just as much as Laura. As much as she wanted to continue biting her roommate, Laura didn’t want to hurt her any more than she already had. She slowly removed her fangs making sure the brush them lightly over the fresh wounds impaling Carmilla’s neck. 

“I’m sorry if that hurt you and I-I’m sorry if I drank too much and I’m sorry for everything before and I-” Carmilla stuck a finger under Laura’s chin and lifted her face to meet her eyes. “Shhh, it’s okay, Cupcake.” She grinned slightly, her eyes tracing Laura’s glowing cherry lips. She threw her arm down causing her sleeve to fall over her hand and wiped the trickle of blood from the corner of the small girl’s lips. Then, as quick as lightning, Carmilla darted forward planting a kiss on Laura’s rosy cheek. 

“Now,” Carmilla sighed, adjusting Laura into a more comfortable position on her lap as the sun began setting over the tops of the campus buildings. “I guess I owe you a bit of an explanation…”


	3. Fire

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Carmilla fills Laura in on what happened. Domestic violence triggers warning. Angst warning, please don't hate me.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Been sorta busy but the next chapter is finally here! Thanks for the love, guys c:

“Should I bust out the puppets?” Laura quipped and Carmilla chuckled a bit drawing her closer in her lap. “Not this time, Cupcake.” She gazed down at the girl in her arms, her eyes glittering. Carmilla drew in a sharp breath and looked out at the wine stained sky. 

“A long, long time ago, back before I was even a vampire, I had this little kitten,” Carmilla stiffened a bit and Laura wrapped her arms tighter around her for support, her eyes urging her on, although she had no idea what this had to do with her. “She was a fluffy little shrimp, hence the name I gave her, Fluffy. Her fur was as black as the wretched charcoal in our fireplace-“ She broke off watching a flock of crows graze the flaming horizon. Laura sat studying Carmilla’s face; the way it twitched when one of the birds let out a soft caw. Only when they had gone did Carmilla continue.

“She just appeared out of nowhere and suddenly she was in my life. She followed me everywhere. We spent the days curled up beside the fire place, her sleeping and I reading, or playing with one of the strings from my coat that would always make her emerald eyes dance. She was the only friend I ever had.” Laura felt her heart sink at Carmilla’s words.

“My mother hated her. ‘Get that vile creature out of my house, young lady!’” Carmilla did her best to try to lighten the mood with a shrill impression of her mother. Laura grinned, snuggling closer to the dark haired girl. “She, my mother, never really liked the idea of animals in the house. ‘I’m not cultivating a farm, Carmilla!’ So Fluffy had to stay outside.” Laura giggled a bit. “What’s so funny?” Carmilla inquired, eyeing the girl skeptically. “I’m just imagining your cat as Fluffy from Harry Potter. You know,” Laura bared her fangs and let out a squeaky roar. 

Carmilla had a good, hearty laugh at the little dork curled up in her lap. “You’re such a nerd. You know that right?” She felt Laura’s warm smile stretch against her skin. It made her heart flutter in the chilly evening air. 

“Anyway,” Carmilla sighed, shifting a bit under the cold sinking sun. “One night it was pouring rain and I begged my mother to let Fluffy in. She insisted on keeping the ‘rat’ locked outside. So I put on my rain boots and my jacket and I went to get her myself.” Carmilla’s nose stung slightly as tears formed behind her eyes.

Laura on the other hand was starting to get a very bad feeling in the pit of her stomach. She didn’t like where her roommate’s story was headed. 

“I searched for a few minutes and then I saw her. Her once fluffy fur was now soaked and clung to her miniature frame. She was so scared, Laura.” Laura glanced up, sadness laced in her caramel eyes. She hugged Carmilla tighter to her, gently running her hand up and down her back. 

Carmilla drew in a shaky breath and continued. “I picked her up, stuffed her inside my coat, and ran inside. My mother was brewing tea at the time. I remember exactly the way it smelled. Bittersweet. She stopped me before I could reach the hallway leading to my room. I almost won.” Carmilla had to steady her breathing a bit. I can’t let her see me cry.   
Pausing to inspect an ant that had suddenly peaked her interest, Carmilla swallowed an inaudible sob. Laura could only watch the pain registering in Carmilla’s eyes helplessly.

“She…she stopped me and demanded to know where I had been. I told her I had gone out to see the frogs and to splash in the newly made puddles. My mother saw right through me, quite literally too, to see Fluffy squeaking against my chest. ‘You went out to get that damn cat didn’t you?’ She snarled at me. I remember shrinking under her swears as she jabbed at me. That’s when Fluffy scrambled from my grasp and ran across our kitchen floor…and when my mother swatted at her sending her off to hit the mantel. She turned on me…and smacked me in the face. She hissed at how stupid I was to bring a filthy creature into the house and that I was considered one too. And just like that, I’ll never forget the ugly rage in her cold eyes as she picked Fluffy up by the tail and threw her into the fiery pit under the mantel.” Carmilla choked, gasping for air. Fuck it. 

She turned to the side as hot tears streamed from her dark eyes. Her lungs felt like they were on fire as she recollected on the terrifying memory. Laura came up to face the girl, thumbing her tears away. “Oh my god, Carm…I’m so sorry.” Carmilla sniffled and unconsciously wiped her nose on Laura’s sweater. “I-it’s okay, Cupcake.” She mewled squeezing the tears from her eyes. She straightened up and ran a hand through Laura’s honey hair, watching the first stars begin to appear.

It was a few minutes of Laura whispering comfort to her and Carmilla finding her composure before she spoke again. She tilted Laura back, staring into her eyes and spoke softly. “That was the day I lost the one thing I had ever loved. I couldn’t go through that again. I couldn’t bear to live my life knowing that I could’ve stopped her myself and kept you safe. But…but when you said you…loved me…it took me by such surprise. In all of the centuries that I’ve lived, no one has ever said that to me. I was always just believed to be a heartless monster unable to be loved.” 

Carmilla stroked Laura’s cheek softly. Laura didn’t know whether she flinched from Carmilla’s doleful words trickling from her thin lips or the surprising tickle at her dimple.   
Her voice was feathery when she spoke again. “I was too stunned to get up, even with my damn vampire strength. And that’s when a blinding flash of milky white dumbfounded the entire campus and you were gone. When everything cleared, I scrambled toward the pit and changed into my panther form. That’s when I just dived in because I couldn’t let my mother win again, even if she wasn’t the woman who caused me angst.”

“And when I hit the bottom…you were just there. You looked like you were sleeping. Peaceful…peaceful yet so fragile and broken. Even in the state of feline, I broke down, Laura. You were my everything and I wasn’t going to let you burn with my mother. It took all of my strength but I managed to haul you up by the scruff and drag you into the safety of the bushes.”

“I tried everything I knew to get you to come back to me. CPR only worsened the state of the gashes and bruises lining your chest. It was a small price to pay for getting you back, but it was getting me nowhere. I was running out of options when one last idea popped into my head. It was my only chance of giving you the life my mother would have succeeded in taking. So as carefully as I could, I bit you.”

Carmilla ran a clammy finger over the spot on Laura’s neck where she had inflicted her. “It was a dire decision, really. But I knew there was no one else that I would rather spend eternity with…” Laura smiled, her eyes glowing with passion. Carmilla watched the stars twinkle in the reflection of Laura’s smiling eyes. 

“I carried you back to our dorm room and left because I couldn’t watch you suffer silently and helplessly. I went for a walk down the corridors and immediately came back upon hearing your cries. And then you refused the blood exactly like a little kid refusing their greens.” Carmilla chuckled and Laura grinned knowingly.   
“But after all that, I came up here and you saved me…again.” Laura whispered, the frosty air nipping at her nose.   
“Because I love you,” Carmilla breathed, drawing in an icy breath. 

They sat in silence for a moment before Laura pulled Carmilla in closer to her, their bodies making up for the loss of heat. She slowly closed her eyes and leaned forward, brushing her nose against Carmilla’s. Carmilla’s face flushed as Laura captured her lips in between hers, the metallic tang of her own blood seeping into her taste buds. 

Laura’s lips were soft, warm and inviting to Carmilla so she deepened the kiss. She traced her tongue over Laura’s wet lips and she felt the small girl smile into her. She only broke away from her when Laura continued giggling like a hyena. “What?” Carmilla smirked, tackling Laura in a big hug and pinning her to the roof. “I just love you so much...And you’ve got a bit of drool in the corner of your mouth.”


	4. Let It Snow

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Is that...snow in the air?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Short chapter this time but it'll be made up for in the next chapter C; MUCH FLUFF

An icy breeze tickled Laura’s nose, causing her to sneeze into a woken state. She bolted upright, shivering in the chilly air. Flurries of thick snowflakes were dancing in a sea of white over her head. A few inches of snow had already buried the dorm building. Carmilla was even bathed in the ghostly white crystals.

The events from the previous night flashed into her head and Laura smiled at what it had become. Feeling the harsh breeze, she looked down at her exposed chest and flushed, throwing her sweater over her head and rubbing her hands together. Laura was pretty sure that if she sat up here for a few minutes more, she would catch hypothermia as easily as child’s ball on a summer’s day. She nudged the sleeping lump beside her. 

Carmilla was huddled under her minuscule leather jacket. Her lips were tinged a light blue and small huffs of visible breath flared from her nostrils like a dragon’s. She growled when Laura shook her again. “Five more minutes…”

“Carm, come on it’s freezing out here and I’m like half naked and…” At the mention of Laura’s lack of clothes, the sleeping figure darted upright. Laura found herself being looked over by Carmilla’s hungry eyes. “Wow, if that’s what it takes to get you up in the morning then-“ Laura’s sentence was swallowed as Carmilla’s lips crashed into hers, bowling her over.

“Carm!” Laura gasped in surprise and twisted under her smooth pillow lips. Or in Laura’s case, pellow lips. Carmilla grazed her tongue over Laura’s iced periwinkle lips, the small girl parting hers slightly. 

Carmilla’s tongue was like a Basilisk, slithering and curling around Laura’s own. Their lips smacked ever so gently and Laura felt her insides turn to pudding. Her roommate’s fingers had curled fittingly over her cheeks, snuggly clasping the warmth from Laura’s blush. But even with Carmilla’s body stuck against her frame, it wasn’t enough to keep out the battering winds.

Laura pulled away slightly, watching a slight sadness wipe across Carmilla’s face. “As much as I’d love to continue…” Laura waltzed her fingers up the dark haired girl’s arm. Carmilla didn’t know whether she shivered from the cold or from the way Laura’s fingers felt, leaving icy trails along her pale skin. “I don’t want you to turn into a Carmsicle.”   
Carmilla snickered and shrugged off her jacket, draping it on her shivering roommate’s shoulders. “I’ll be fine, Sherbet. It’s you we have to worry about…” Carmilla narrowed her eyes mentally figuring out when Laura needed her next helping of blood. It was going to have to be soon or else they would have a repeat of last night. Not that Carmilla complained about the last part. She grabbed Laura’s hand and they both stood.

“Carm…” Laura peeled off the jacket Carmilla had wrapped around her. She dangled it in front of Carmilla smirking. “If we’re going in, you should probably put this on.” Carmilla grinned mischievously, looking down at her chest and back up at Laura. “Now where would the fun be in that?”

 

After a few minutes of light arguing, Laura finally persuaded Carmilla to put the jacket on promising that she wouldn’t have to wear it later that night. And after a quick kiss, hot enough to melt the snow underneath them, Laura reluctantly dragged Carmilla toward the ladder. She flipped herself over the edge and began to shimmy down, Carmilla smirking over top of her. “What?” She asked, peering over the roof and into Carmilla’s toffee eyes. “It’s just a nice view from up here.” Laura’s foot caught in a rung, heat flooding her face as she looked down at her almost exposed chest. “Carm!”

Adjusting her footing, she continued down and hopped off, landing with a soft thud in the powdery snow below. Carmilla was quick to follow, eager to get inside to warmth. Hand in hand they made their way around the building and back inside the double doors. Laura noticed that the doors didn’t seem quite as heavy as the night before. Vampire perk? She nuzzled closer into Carmilla as the warmth brushed the ice off their shoulders. 

Taking a sharp turn around the corner, Laura was suddenly met with a face full of papers, test tubes and…ginger hair. “Laf?” was all she managed to squeak before falling into a colossal heap of scattered papers and a few broken tubes. “Oh, Laura, I’m sorry!” They bent down to help her to her feet when they noticed the broody shadow in front of them. “…Carmilla?” 

“Must I be?” Carmilla sighed but stooped down to help gather the papers and lift Laura to her feet. “But, weren’t you like…gone?” Lafontaine gawked still holding a few of their lab papers. “Couldn’t leave you lack wits to fend for yourselves now, could I, Gingervitis?” Carmilla handed a thick pile of papers to Lafontaine but grinned when she met their eyes.

Laura dropped to the floor and swept the larger pieces of glass into her hands. “Hey aren’t you usually in class right now, Laf?” She asked suddenly upon glancing at the clock over their head. “Didn’t you guys hear? Classes are cancelled. It’s a snow day.” 

Laura stopped picking up the shattered remains of the test tubes and stared at Lafontaine with large owl eyes. “Snow day?” A grin spread across her face as her eyes, as big as the moon, darted to Carmilla’s. “Oh no, Cupcake. I am not going back out there. It’s fucking freezing.” 

“Just think about it, Carm,” Laura smiled gleefully as she dumped the glass in the nearest trash bin. “We could have a huge snowball fight! And I’m sure we could find a sled somewhere. Um…we could go on a nice walk; I know how much you love art. I’m sure it’ll be very…artsy out there, with all of the snow…and the…trees…” Laura rambled, throwing her arms around for extra emphasis. “Do you wanna build a snowma-“ Carmilla lunged forward and put a hand over Laura’s mouth silencing her. “If I say yes, will you quit singing that annoying song?” Laura nodded enthusiastically under Carmilla’s palm, her eyes glowing. 

Lafontaine looked on from the background. “You guys are quite the catch, huh?” They smirked, watching as the two entwined fingers. “Can it, Einstein.” 

 

As soon as their dorm room had shut, Laura excitedly bounded over to the wardrobe and began digging through her mountain of clothes. Carmilla flopped lazily on her bed after grabbing Laura’s yellow pillow and cracked open a book. 

Articles of clothing flew out of Laura’s hands at alarmingly fast speeds, whizzing past the lounging Carmilla. "What are you even looking for?” She grunted as an owl sweater landed on top of her novel. She grumpily snapped it shut and walked over to Laura, who was now buried in a heap of fabric. She fished a hand into the untouched section of the wardrobe and yanked out a black item. “This!” She held it up for Carmilla to see, smiling like a dork. 

“What is that hideous thing?” Carmilla snorted with repugnance. Laura’s face fell a bit but she stood up and fitted it over Carmilla’s head. “Hey!” The dark hair girl gasped angrily in surprise as her vision was suddenly cut off. “Oops! Here…” When she could see again, Carmilla realized Laura had led her in front of their mirror. “What do you think?”  
Carmilla knew exactly what she thought, “I think I look like a giant dumbass!” The mirror reflected a bubbly Laura and a grouchy Carmilla in a black cat-eared beanie. “Carmilla Karnstein, I think you’re adorable.” 

Carmilla couldn’t deny the butterflies she felt when Laura had complimented her but she shook them away along with the hat. “I’m not wearing it.” Laura picked the hat off of the floor and spun to face her roommate. “Please, Carm?” She held out the beanie for the other vampire, her lip pouted and her chocolate eyes resembling those of a puppy’s. Carmilla snatched the hat from her hand and rolled her eyes. “Whatever, but I’m not wearing it for long.” 

 

Carmilla was sprawled out on her bed, nose buried in her book, when Laura bounded out of the bathroom. Her roommate looked up in surprise but then chuckled at the sight of her. Laura was dressed head to toe in thick snow gear. A very puffy bright blue coat was wrapped snuggly around her frame with a matching beanie to top it off. Her legs sported velvety black leggings with disappeared in her chunky snow boots. Mittens hugged her hands gently and a thick pair of goggles rested over her eyes. Carmilla could see slight bulges in Laura’s pockets and there was no doubt that they were probably pepper sprays and bear sprays; although bears were surely hibernating by now. 

“What the frilly hell are you wearing, Cupcake?” Carmilla snickered and tossed her book over her shoulder, making her way to Laura. “Snow gear!” Laura mumbled under the collar of her coat. She adjusted it and tried again, “Snow gear!” This time it was loud and animated. Carmilla lifted the goggles from Laura’s face and gazed into her eyes. “Are these necessary?” Laura shuffled causing her jacket to squeak against the nylon exterior. “My dad thought that without them I’d go blind from the icy winds.” 

Carmilla threw them aside and watched Laura’s look of confusion form over her face. “I like them better off. That way I can see your eyes.” Laura smacked Carmilla playfully with a mitten covered hand. “Aw, Carm, you’re such a romantic.” She laughed and Carmilla rolled her eyes playfully. “But, now it’s your turn to get all geared up! Come on!” Laura hopped quickly to Carmilla and grabbed her wrist. Carmilla tried wrenching herself free but was met with Laura’s protests. She shut her mouth and was blinded once more as the cat beanie was thrown over her eyes.


	5. Ice Ice Baby

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Snowday! What sort of mischief will Laura and Carmilla get up to?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for slow updates, I hate school. ENJOY SOME FLUFF!!!

After being fitted in yet another oversized ski jacket, and Carmilla ripping it off several times, Laura had handed her her usual leather jacket. Carmilla had gladly put it on, wrapping it tightly around her shivering body. Laura looked at her roommate concerned but Carmilla just muttered that she was tingling with excitement. She knew Carmilla well enough to know that her words dripped with sarcasm. The leather bound vampire was whisked into a tight, warm hug, their jackets making scratchy noises.

“Do we really have to go out there with those lack wits?” Carmilla grumbled, unsticking herself from Laura’s grasp. “It’ll be fun, Carm, just you wait and see.” Laura grabbed Carmilla’s mittened hand and dragged her out of their room. 

Once she had again, nearly knocked the double doors off their hinges from her newly acquired vampire strength, Laura happily bounded out into the snow like a puppy. She nearly tripped over herself with all of the thick snow gear plastered to her body, making her more clumsy than usual. 

The trees surrounding the campus were captured in a dazzling ice coating and glittered in the soft sunlight. Blankets of white engulfed the usual patchy brown dirt transforming it into an ornate picture perfect postcard. The frosty air nipped at the two girl’s noses, but Laura didn’t seem to mind.

Plopping down in a deeper pile of the pearly powder, she giggled while flailing her arms up and down. “Come make snow angels with me, Carm!” She chirped out, her body leaving an angelic groove. 

Carmilla was in no mood to make snow angels. A snow devil, perhaps, but having to actually touch the icy wetness was enough to drive off that thought.  
Carmilla leaned against the side of the campus building, her hands stuffed in the pockets of her leather jacket. It wasn’t like she was too cool for the snow. Snow was just…too cool for her. Cold in fact. Blissfully cold. And she couldn’t forget about how soaked she’d be with the wetness of the slush. And wetness and Carmilla did not mix unless she was moaning Laura’s name. 

She was perfectly content watching the small dork loll in the fluffy crystals. Laura had just tripped over a large mound of snow while approaching the vampire, sending Carmilla into a fit of chuckles, which abruptly stopped when a huge chunk of ice and snow exploded on the side of her face.

If Carmilla was cold before, all of it was melted away as she boiled with rage. “Who the FUCK threw that?!” She snarled looking around wildly for the culprit. The side of her face blossomed scarlet where she was hit. Carmilla gritted her teeth at the lack of response. But with Carmilla’s attitude, who would own up to the throw? 

Laura was at her side just in time to get a chest full of snow herself. She was sent backwards and tripped over herself once again. She landed with a thud, the blow knocking off her beanie. She fitted it back over her head and copied Carmilla’s watchful eyes. 

A ginger head popped up from behind a larger bank of snow with another ball held firmly in her glove. “Carm, watch out!” Laura bowled over her roommate as the ice zipped over their heads. This time it was Carmilla’s time to lose her hat, ice crystals latching onto her dark hair. She snatched up the cat ears and squeezed it tight in her fist. “So Xena’s behind this, huh?” Carmilla was quick to speed over to the huddled Danny. Laura was surprisingly faster and jumped in between them, blocking Carmilla from her friend. 

“Carm, it’s just a game. A good old snowball fight,” Laura glanced back at Danny, nodding her head a little too enthusiastically. “Right, Danny?” The ginger haired girl stood and towered over Carmilla and Laura. She sported her letterman’s jacket, her flaming hair twisted into a neat braid. “Yeah, it’s cool.” She casually dropped the snowball she was holding and watched Carmilla’s nostrils flare. 

“Well then, Chewbacca, if it’s a game you want, it’s a game you’ll get.” Carmilla dropped down and scooped up a ball of snow, packing it tightly. She side stepped Laura and cannoned the ice right at Danny’s face. Danny was quick to duck and scoop up her own as Carmilla’s barely grazed her head. Laura looked on giggling as Danny and Carmilla hurled snowballs at each other. 

When Danny had decided to switch it up and instead sling a fistful of snow at Laura, she knew she was fucked when the two vampires ganged up on her. Laura smiled evilly as she rounded on Danny, a rather large glob of ice caught in her mittens. But before she could propel it at the tall girl, Danny had whipped her glove off and whistled loudly. Two more ginger heads popped up on either side of her, behind the bank. Laura gaped and turned to Carmilla. “Run,” She whispered, mock fear and adrenaline pushing her from her rooted position.

Snowballs whizzed past their ears as they turned to run. “Whoa, look at that track star! Hey, Laura, how’d you get so damn fast?” She heard Lafontaine call as they hopped back on one foot and slung another snowball their way. It burst on Carmilla’s jacket and she abruptly stopped and turned, her hands gripping Laura’s shoulders. She looked up at her roommate, wondering if Carmilla had been hurt. “We can’t let them win,” Carmilla mewed and looked up into the distant sky. Laura laughed with exhilaration and huffed, “Let, what part of this looks like let?” She winked at Carmilla remembering the early days of being roommates.

“Give me your hat,” Laura smirked and Carmilla happily obliged. She began scooping rough ice balls into spheres and stuffing them into the beanie. Carmilla was quick to follow and with their combined speed, the hat had swelled to nearly three times its size with snowballs. Laura filled her own hat just as quick and stood up, dusting off her mittens. “Ready?” Carmilla nodded, her eyes narrowing with determination and a smile tugging at her lips. 

Laura sprinted off, cursing her coat for making too many loud scratching noises. She dropped to her stomach and wiggled across the icy ground, the snowbank drawing closer. She could just make out the top of Danny’s head, a flame in the milky sky, peeking above the mound. Laura tried rolling stealthily, like one of those spies from her old DVD collection, but failed miserably and landed in a flurry of powdery snow. 

Carmilla had thought of her own strategy and was sneaking up on the unsuspecting Perry. The clean freak’s back was to Carmilla, so she never saw it coming when the stalking dark haired girl wrapped an arm around her middle and cupped her mouth with her mitten. Carmilla dragged Perry out from behind and peeled off her mittens, shoving them in the now screaming ginger haired girl’s mouth. She plopped down on top of her and ran a hand through her hair. 

Laura was humming the James Bond 007 spy song and attempting cool spy moves but every time she tried, she ended up with a face full of bitter coldness. At one point she thought she heard Perry scream but she shook it off along with the mountains of snow forming in her hair from falling so much. She reached into her hat and yanked out a fresh snowball, juggling it in her hands a few times before sending it sailing over the mound and hearing a “Hey!” from Lafontaine. 

Laf was quick on their feet and soon enough it was a raging war between them and the tiny Laura. Danny had joined in a well, pummeling Laura with snowball after snowball. “Hey, where’s Perry?” Lafontaine suddenly stopped and asked. Everyone went silent except for Laura who chortled at the thought of Perry as a platypus. 

Confused, Danny looked around until her eyes stopped on a dark heap over near the thicket of trees. Carmilla looked up and waved, cupping her hands to her mouth. “If you want your Emma Pilsbury back, you’re going to have to surrender!” 

Laura snorted at Carmilla’s escapade and rubbed her hands together turning to the dumbstruck gingers. “So what’ll it be, um,” Laura tried hard to put herself in Carmilla’s shoes or in her case, leather boots, to come up with a great nickname for the pair. “…you…cherries?” Lafontaine face palmed and Danny shook her head, a smile forming. She held her hands up in mock surrender. “Yeah, yeah, yeah, Munchkin, we surrender,” Danny spoke disappointed and dropped the remaining snowballs to the ground. 

Lafontaine was already bounding toward the imprisoned Perry with such great speed that Laura wouldn’t be surprised if Lafontaine was a vampire theirself. 

Laura looked up at Danny and then down at her snow boots. “Sorry about the whole surrender thing. I know how much you like competing. It’s just that Carm-“ Danny placed a hand on Laura’s shoulder and their eyes met. “Oh my god, Laura, it was just a game,” She laughed and Laura smiled sheepishly. “You don’t have to apologize. Besides,” Danny smiled smugly and packed one last snowball into her gloves. “I can get you back anytime, Hollis.” Laura shrieked as the snowball exploded against her chest.

“Well, so can I!” Laura jeered, baring her fangs and then instantly regretting it when Danny gasped and took a few steps back.

“Laura, what the hell…?” 

“Danny, wait,” Laura reached for Danny’s letterman jacket sleeve but she was already striding toward Carmilla who was still perched on top of Perry. “I’m not gonna just stand around while Edward over there chews you up like some stupid dog toy,” Her fists clenched making her knuckles match the color of the flurries now showering from the silver sky. “Danny, it wasn’t like that!” Laura rounded on Danny stopping her firmly in her tracks. 

“I almost died, Danny. I risked my own life after you and the Summers and Zetas fell back. And after I drove the sword in, the explosion from it would have killed me. Carm saved me the only way she could.” Danny narrowed her eyes as she listened as Laura retold the tragedy. 

Laura’s breath formed small puffs as she waited for Danny’s reaction. “I just wanted to make sure you were safe. And I’m glad she saved you but…I just wish I would have been there, too.” Her shoulders sagged and her head dropped to stare at their footprints in the snow. “I know, but hey, I’m here now right?” Danny looked up and forced a smile. “And I’m totally gonna kick your butt in the next snowball fight!” “You wish, Hollis.” Danny cleared her throat and stood up taller although Laura could still see a hint of sadness in her eyes.

“Um, could you promise that you won’t tell anyone about me becoming part of the undead troupe?” Danny stared unmoving at Laura and blinked. “Of course. Of course I promise.” Laura shifted uncomfortably under Danny’s watchful eyes. “It’s just that I don’t want Perry freaking out any more than she already is about all of this supernatural stuff. And Laf will probably want to strap me down to a table and have a play day of Operation and…” Danny punched Laura playfully in the shoulder. “Don’t worry, your secret is safe with me.” Laura nodded warmly. “Thanks, Danny.”

 

After finally pushing Carmilla off of the horrified Perry, with combined strength from Danny, Laura and Lafontaine, the pentad decided to compete on who could make the best snowman. Perry and Lafontaine got to work on theirs adding a rainbow scarf, a dusty old broom found behind the trash bins by the entrance and a pipe which Perry immediately took out complaining that, “Snowmen don’t smoke, Lafontaine. It would obviously melt them.” 

Danny had taken Laura’s beanie from the snowball war and had fitted it snugly over her snowman. It towered the other two by at least a few feet. She had stuck two holly berries into the well-rounded head for the eyes and even decorated its body with a few of the holly leaves to complete the look. Carmilla had snickered saying that, “It looks like Poison Ivy! You guys could be twins!” Her snarky comment hadn’t gone unnoticed when Danny threw another snowball at the smirking vampire.

Laura had started off her and Carmilla’s snowman with such caution, making sure to make each layer smooth and round. Carmilla sat back and watched finding it funny when she casually tossed a few berries at Laura and watching her whip around looking for who had thrown them. 

When the basic shape had been completed, Carmilla joined in taking the carrot nose and sticking down below in between the second and last layer. “What? I thought he could use a little pick me up. He is looking a bit down,” And that’s when the head of their beloved snowman had plopped onto the ground in front of Laura’s feet.

By the time they had reattached the head and Laura had finished having fun pretending she was Meredith Grey, everyone’s snowman had been completed. Laura had shaped some ears from the left over snow and had stuck them on along with a few small twigs for whiskers. Carmilla had smeared a few berries to look like blood over the snow cat’s mouth, grinning when Perry looked at it alarmingly.

No one really cared who had won. Danny said she had better get inside and get ready for classes tomorrow and Perry suggested that she and Lafontaine should go in to make sure no one was causing problems on their floor. 

“Want to go for a walk?” Laura asked and Carmilla nodded slightly, taking Laura’s hand in her own, glad that the other buffoons had gone inside. 

A swift, bone-chilling breeze tugged at Laura’s exposed and rosy cheeks and she stepped closer to Carmilla. A collection of snowflakes formed on her eyelashes and she blinked through them, looking at the beauty of Silas University in the winter months.

Large oak trees loomed overhead as they padded in silence through the thick forest. A few patches of overgrown bushes sat caked with pounds of snow, their sharp green leaves dappling the silver. Laura could feel a numbness returning behind her eyes but she trudged on through the snow, happy to be walking with Carmilla.

A semi-clearing with one large oak tree was just visible a couple of feet away and Laura, wanting to test out her new vampire speed once more, stopped in her tracks and turned to face Carmilla. “Race you!” She whispered and took off kicking up snow. The tree grew in size as she galloped over the fluffy snow. “I’m totally going to win!” She shrieked happily over her shoulder but when she turned around again, she immediately froze in her tracks. 

“Gotta be faster than that, Road Runner.” Carmilla was grinning playfully as she casually examined her mitten, leaning against the tree. “What? How-“ “I’ve had 335 years of practice, Cupcake.” Carmilla marched over to Laura engulfing her in a tight embrace. “Maybe some other time, I could show you how to go…fast.” Carmilla whispered the last part in Laura’s ear causing her to shiver.

A sudden sharp pain flooded Laura’s head and she fell to her knees in the snow. Her muscles that had been twitching since they had left the group were now pulsing with a dull ache. “Fuck, I knew I forgot something,” Carmilla growled at her forgetfulness. “You’re going to need blood. We better head back.” Laura nodded slightly to spare her head from the pain and tried getting to her feet. She crumpled weakly under the extra pounds of her snow equipment.

“You’re lucky you’re so damn cute,” Carmilla smiled and huffed as she lifted Laura up onto her shoulders. Carmilla began trudging back through the trees when Laura spoke up. “So, if I’m a vampire, does that mean I can change into an animal too?” The question had been on Laura’s mind ever since she discovered she had been turned into a vampire.  
Carmilla tilted her head in thought and nodded. “Yeah, I think so. I mean I can change into a-“ “Giant black cat,” Laura said softly somewhere above Carmilla. “Giant black cat,” She smiled warmly. 

“So you could be like Padfoot, only a cat!” Laura chirped but coughed slightly. “Totally, Cupcake.” Carmilla rubbed a hand up and down Laura’s leg comfortingly. 

“So what animal do you think I could change into?” Laura’s head spun with a mixture of pain and possibilities. “Could I be a giant cat, too? Or what if I was a giraffe?” She giggled. “No, that’d be Danny.” This made Carmilla chuckle. “No idea, Creampuff, but I’m pretty sure Danny would end up being a big red dog.”

 

When they had finally made it back to their dorm room and peeled off their sopping wet snow gear, Laura had collapsed on her bed in a heap of Batman boxers and a cream colored cami. Carmilla was busy preparing a steaming mug of hot chocolate with added blood for her and Laura. She brought the two mugs over to Laura’s bed and handed her her TARDIS mug. Carmilla set her mug down and went to her bed grabbing Laura’s yellow pillow and stopping to grab the Harry Potter blanket that was thrown on the floor. 

Snuggling up together in the bed, they sipped their hot chocolate gazing warmly into each other’s eyes. “Thanks for dragging me out in the snow today. It wasn’t too stupid.” Carmilla smiled, pulling Laura closer to her. Laura shut her eyes, sleep filling her worn out body and simply hummed back at her roommate. 

She had reached full unconsciousness and sweet chocolatey dreams filled her head. The dull pounding was now replaced with Carmilla in her cat form and Laura as a smaller, sandy colored feline. She was following the lithe dark shape somewhere through the forest where she had been earlier when someone burst through their door, calling out for her.

“Laura! There’s blood! It’s everywhere outside! There’s a trail of it and it leads to the top of your dorm roof! Laura, someone’s dead!” Danny stood horrified in the door frame as Carmilla and Laura were startled awake, fear growing in the pits of their stomachs.


	6. Baby, now we've got Bad Blood

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The gang heads up to the roof to see what Danny os rambling on about. Goriness involved.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> More apologies for the slow updates, I'll try to squeeze another chapter in this week before we are hit with Carmilla angst. Oh, also if you guys want to check out my tumblr, it's glitterypuppyswiftcakes. I know, I have a radical url.

By the time Danny had herded the two vampires out into the bitter darkness, Laura had already broke Carmilla’s bedside mug and a lamp upon her jittery scurry. She didn’t think she’d ever get used to the strength and speed that came with being a vampire. 

Laura, flashlight in hand, trailed after Danny, shivering in her Batman boxers. The sickly path of scarlet shimmered in the soft glow of their flashlights. Although she was numb with terror, Laura couldn’t shake the deep grumbles her belly made when the copper scent snuck its way into her nostrils. The trail coiled around the building just like Danny had said. 

“Danny, how did you even find this?” Laura asked, her stomach lurching when she saw something that resembled raw hamburger meat bathed in blood. She quickly shined her flashlight in the opposite direction.

“I was just coming to check and see if you made it back okay,” Laura heard a small unsubtle gag from Carmilla and she elbowed her in the side. “But it sort of smelled weird and then my flashlight caught the light reflection from the blood and…I followed it up to the top of your dorm roof.” In the soft glow emitting from their flashlights, Danny’s face was a pale olive green.

Carmilla stayed silent, occasionally making one handed shadow puppets to race across the dappled snow. 

The trail stopped abruptly underneath the ladder Laura had left lying against the bricks from her previous visit. It gleamed silver in the dull light their flashlights cast. Laura looked it up and down, confused when she didn’t spot a single drop of blood. 

Danny nodded upward and Laura took each rung, the icy metal burning her palms at each grasp. She hopped neatly over the edge followed by Carmilla and then Danny. There was still no sign of a body, or the remnants of one. 

“So you called us out here in this bitter weather for nothing, Velma? Jinkies, what a great excuse to see L-” Carmilla bit back the snarky comment when Danny’s flashlight illuminated a carcass near the edge of the building.

Laura felt her blood turn to ice as her jaw dropped in horror. Blood spattered the entire south side of the roof. The snow was disturbed and kicked up all around a battered body that Laura could barely register as once breathing. Ice was caked in the corpse’s hair and clumped together in stiff gelid strands. Her once rosy lips were now a deep shade of ghastly periwinkle. The cadaver was Swiss cheese; shredded and filled with apertures. Laura felt queasy when she realized how much of her body was indecipherable. She lay in a sea of crimson, her organs lumps turning invisible as the snow fell harder. 

Laura’s heart hammered at the scene before her. She felt like she was in one of those old horror films and Ghost Face would pop out of nowhere to get her next.   
Carmilla bent down next to the corpse and cautiously touched a loose piece of flesh that clung to the gaping hole in the middle of her chest. “Carm…?” Laura whispered in the frosty silence, glancing at Carmilla to distract herself from the slaughtered student. 

Carmilla rose, wiping the excess blood on the side of her pants. “She’s been dead for a while. Her body’s ice cold.” 

Danny paced next to Carmilla, running a hand through her flaming hair. “I just don’t understand. I thought that with the Dean being gone and all…all of our troubles would be over with.” Carmilla grunted when her flashlight gave out and tried clicking it back on again. “Yeah, well, wouldn’t that be nice, but that’s not the way the world works, Xena.” She hit the flashlight off of her leg a few times and it finally burned back to life.

“I bet this wouldn’t have happened if a certain vampire hadn’t shown up here, bringing all of this misfortune and nearly getting us all killed.” Danny shot back, taking a subtle step toward Laura out of habit. Carmilla gritted her teeth and narrowed her eyes, advancing on the towering ginger. “Oh boo hoo, and I totally would have gotten away with it if it weren’t for you meddling lack wits. But oh, wait. IT WASN’T ME.” 

“STOP!” Laura growled, surprising both Danny and Carmilla. “There is a dead body right here and we have no lead as to who or whatever did this yet. And it certainly doesn’t help that you guys are constantly at each other’s throats 24/7. So what I’m going to need from you guys, since no one cares right now that a girl is fucking dead, is for you guys to just get along for the time being and at least try to pretend you’re not mortal enemies, okay? So could you please just do that?” Laura huffed, her hands digging into her hair.

A wide-eyed Danny nodded slowly and backed away from the unmoving Carmilla. “Fine,” Carmilla grumbled and reluctantly turned away, retracing her steps to the heap of scarlet stained massacre. She squatted down to inspect it more while Laura pulled out her tiny flip phone from the side of her boxers. She flipped it open and turned her back to the two girls, walking to the edge of the roof. She gazed up at the swirling vortex of snow crystals and sighed, pressing the middle button on Lafontaine’s contact.

"Laura? What the hell man it’s like……3 AM."

Lafontaine’s speech was slurred with drowsiness but Laura pressed on, filling them in on the corpse that occupied the top of the dorm building.

“I thought maybe you could take, I don’t know, a sample of some sort to see who it was? Or help investigate? We’ve got no leads and I don’t see any evidence for who or what could have done it. No weapons or tools up here just…the body. Or what’s left of it anyway.” Laura shuddered and pushed a strand of hair behind her ear. 

"Oh yeah totally. I could come up right now and take a few samples. I’m sure the guys down in the bio labs will be all over a DNA test."

There was a muffled noise on the other end of the line and Laura could just make out Perry’s voice questioning Lafontaine on who they were talking to this early in the morning. 

"Oh, Perr, um…it’s just Laura. She needs some help with a…project." 

“A project at 3 in the morning?” There was a crackling sound and Perry’s voice grew louder as she stole the phone away from a complaining Lafontaine. “Who’s this? The Laura I know is always passed out at these hours.”

“It’s Laura, Perry.” She massaged her temple with her free hand. Why was Perry always so difficult? “Could you please give the phone back to Laf?” Laura demanded, her teeth starting to chatter. 

“Oh my god, Laura, are you outside? Why? What are you wearing, please tell me you’ve dressed warm.” 

“You two sound like that State Farm commercial,” Carmilla snickered as Laura remembered just how incredibly sensitive her roommate’s hearing was. She rolled her eyes and shifted uncomfortably in the cold wind.

On the other end of the line, the phone was finally wrestled from Perry and Lafontaine was back, speaking quickly and softly. “I’ll be up in a couple seconds, Laura.” Immediately following that was a loud protest from Perry and the end tone from them hanging up. 

Laura snapped her phone shut and was promptly dragged into a warm hug from Carmilla. She stroked a hand through Laura’s hair and kissed her forehead softly. “We’ll figure this out, Cupcake.” 

 

When Lafontaine had climbed over the edge of the roof, no one was prepared for who was following them. A chattering Perry clambered after her roommate and was frustrated with Lafontaine coming out in this weather. “Lafontaine, I just don’t understand why you have to go out here right now. Couldn’t this have waited until morning or…” Perry trailed off when her eyes landed on the minced remains.

She choked out an inhuman yelp, her body as frozen in place as the dead girl’s. 

“I told her not to come,” Lafontaine sighed. They strode over to the body like a child in a toy store. “Oh man, this is brutal.” They took their tweezers they had brought and plucked the piece of flesh from the corpse. They shoved it quickly into a plastic baggie and filled another with blood soaked snow and a few strands of her hair. 

“I’ll get these down to the guys as soon as I can.” Lafontaine nodded and stood back examining the lacerated cadaver. Pulling out their iPhone, they snapped a quick picture and plummeted the phone back into their deep jacket pocket.

They said a hasty goodbye and shuffled over to Perry, shielding her eyes. “Come on, Perr.” They wrapped an arm around Perry and helped her to the ladder. Perry said nothing, her skin as pale as Carmilla’s. 

Sleet poured from the inky sky and Laura twisted her exposed legs into Carmilla’s to keep warm. “We should probably head in,” She uttered as her hair filled with icy beads. Danny nodded toward the carcass, “I’ll call up a few of the Summers to help with getting the body down to a proper burial location.” She shuffled her feet a bit, her eyes laced with tears.

“I don’t know if I knew her or not but it’s so horrible to know that she had a life here filled with so many people and stories and now it’s just…gone.” Danny sniffled and Laura detached herself from Carmilla to give Danny a hug. “I know, Danny. It’ll be okay. We’ll find out who did this and stop them from ever doing it again, okay?” She rubbed her back a bit feeling Danny nod into her shoulder. 

When Carmilla cleared her throat impatiently, Laura stepped back from Danny, searching her eyes. “You’ll be okay getting them down here? Do you need me to stay up here or…?” Danny shook her head, wrapping her letterman jacket tighter around her chest. “I’ll be okay, it’s not that far a trip from our dorms.” 

Laura smiled slightly and took Carmilla’s hand. “Call me when you’re done, okay?” The ginger haired girl nodded and waved off Laura commenting, “Laura, you’re bound to freeze to death with those boxers on, go in, I’m fine. See you later.” Laura brushed off the death joke with the corpse laying a few feet in front of her and turned to leave. “Bye, Danny.”

 

When they had made it back to the stale warmth of their dorm room, it was nearly 5:00. As soon as she hit her bed, Laura was out like a light. Carmilla wasn’t feeling as tired and busied herself with a book until she was tired of reading. With a last flick of a page, Carmilla settled the book back neatly in the shelf behind her and made her way to the snoring Laura.   
Carmilla buried herself in the thick blankets on her bed, curling up beside Laura, an uneasy feeling in her stomach. Even after seeing and taking part in centuries of murder, this time felt strangely different. Carmilla couldn’t shake the feeling that this time, it would be much worse than anything she had ever witnessed.


	7. Guess who's back...back again

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Laura's back in front of the camera! Hoorah

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know this is a shorter chapter but I wanted to squeeze an update in before the angst storm probably coming tomorrow. So...enjoy! c;

“Greetings, gentle viewers! Bet you’re surprised to see another video up after the whole conclusion of the evil Darth Vampire.” Carmilla groaned at Laura’s lame reference and dug her nose deeper into the novel she was reading.

Laura sat in her rolling desk chair addressing her laptop. It felt good to be back again in front of the webcam again. 

“But, we have another problem…” She trailed off reaching into an infamous tray housing a dozen chocolate chip cookies. She paused, her hand hovering over a particularly chocolatey one and took a deep breath. “Someone, we don’t know who yet, was found murdered this morning. If you guys know anything about a missing girl, please let me know. Anything will help.” 

She squeezed the bridge of her nose and scrunched her eyes closed. Couldn’t she just catch a break? But no, Laura thought, where would the fun in that be? She sighed and turned to actually grab a cookie, dunking it in her TARDIS mug of blood. Her viewers probably thought she was going mad.

She then realized that whoever may be watching this new video she was about to upload, had no idea what had happened before the fall of the Dean. Laura straightened up a bit in her chair smiling not too large as to expose her fangs.

“So I bet you guys are dying to know what happened, huh?” She shook off yet another death joke with the recent murder and began to retell the heroic tale, saving the part where Carmilla turned her into a vampire. “And Carm dragged me out just before I became fish food,” She simply stated turning to face Carmilla. 

Carmilla didn’t look up from her book. She gave an awkward half wave and flipped her page with annoyance. She didn’t like how Laura paraded her heroicness like some winning cattle at a state fair. 

“Danny’s doing okay too,” Laura reported, ignoring Carmilla’s retching noise from behind her book. “Although she’s sorta…overprotective. I know it’s just because she cares but…she kind of reminds me a lot of my dad.” She shrugged, moving onto another topic before her mouth could babble on and probably get her on Danny’s bad side. 

“So, yeah. If you guys saw or heard anything unusual last night, please let me know.” Laura urged, reaching for another cookie and grumbling through a mouthful of chocolate when the crumbs littered her lap. She swept the bits off and nearly choked on the remnants of her treat when she was suddenly spun around.

“Thought I could help you with a little research, sweetheart,” Carmilla growled playfully, not implying a lick of actual investigation. Laura stiffened a bit and turned back to face her laptop. “Yeah, okay.” She smiled and minimized the recording tab she had currently pulled up on her screen. 

Carmilla grabbed the back of the chair and slowly rolled it back toward the bed tauntingly. Her novel had been tossed out of boredom and Carmilla swiped it off in a clean sweep, plopping down on the edge of the bed. 

“Carm, I really need to start digging up information on this unknown person…” Laura muttered but her breath hitched when Carmilla’s hot breath suddenly met her ear. “You could always come investigate me, Laura.” She whispered, drawling out the small girl’s name. 

Laura’s face flushed and she tried her best to roll away from Carmilla. However much she wanted to spend the night canoodling with her roommate, Laura knew she had to piece at least something together. 

Her socks skidded desperately on the floor but Carmilla’s strength got the better of her and she huffed in annoyance. “Carmilla. Karnstein. If I don’t start trying to find out who this person was, we could possibly have another murder! We don’t know if this was a serial killer or an everyday murderer or just someone who must have been really pissed off or-” Laura ate her words as she was swiveled around to face a stunning Carmilla.

Carmilla’s pupils were dilated with hunger as she stared down at the flabbergasted Laura. She planted a soft peck on Laura's dry lips and it blossomed into a kiss that Laura quickly deepened. She knew she would have eventually fallen under the vampire's spell; she just didn't think it'd be this soon. 

Their lips stuck together causing Laura to sneak a quick bite to Carmilla’s. She slid her tongue over the dark girl’s lips and Carmilla parted hers slightly. She flicked her tongue teasingly at Laura and the small girl whimpered, bringing her roommate’s face closer to hers.

Carmilla broke the kiss but only for a second so that she could hop off the bed and onto Laura's lap. She straddled the small vampire and once again took her lip into hers. Laura let out a quiet moan which quickly evolved as Carmilla’s lips left hers and trailed hot open mouth kisses along her jawline. "Carm..." Laura's ragged breath caught in her throat and she squeezed her eyes shut against each nip. 

Carmilla nibbled on her ear lobe, her fiery breath blowing sweet nothings into Laura’s ear. Laura gasped from the chilly sensation being sent through her body. She bit her lip looking away as Carmilla peppered more kiss trails down her neck. She scrunched her eyes shut but when she opened them she saw a familiar red light still lit up on her laptop.

“Oh, crap.” Laura leaned back against her chair, embarrassment flooding her cheeks. Carmilla followed Laura’s eyes and let out a throaty purr. “Might as well continue, Buttercup…” She flicked a hand through Laura’s honey hair and cupped her cheek leaning in once more. Laura stuck a finger out to stop Carmilla’s lips from turning her harmless vlog into a porno. 

“As much as I would love to continue with the camera on, I’m pretty sure I’d be banned from making another video again. I have to get this uploaded like...right now so I can at least get some lead. Plus, like most of the school watches this. Wouldn’t want to film this for posterity…” 

“Posterity can bite me just like I’m about to bite your-” “CARMILLA.” Laura quickly switched off the camera and hit the upload button. She assumed her viewers wouldn’t mind that she didn’t edit a single thing. Laura could care less right now as she hungrily resumed where they had left. Sort of like Netflix. Carmilla was indeed a quetie.

Carmilla suckled Laura’s lip as she slowly began grinding her hips on the small girl. Laura knotted her fingers through the thick tangle of the vampire’s hair pulling herself deeper into the kiss.

Carmilla’s tongue was warm as it tauntingly engulfed Laura’s own. Their lips smacking and noses bumping, Carmilla and Laura were lost in the heat of the moment. Carmilla broke away but only for a beat, carrying on as she bit softly down Laura’s throat. 

Laura moaned and tilted her head away to give Carmilla more access. She took the advantage and vigorously sucked and nipped at Laura’s pale skin, decorating her with shadowy teeth marks. Laura shuddered at each bite, her heart racing and her palms sweating. 

Carmilla lifted her dark head and crashed her lips back into Laura’s, dangerously sliding a hand up her shirt. She made a small whimpering noise in the back of her throat when Laura bit down hard on her lush, blood stained lips. 

Carmilla’s fingers worked quick as she unbuttoned Laura’s shirt, her lips following and kissing a hot path down her chest. Laura leaned back in a valiant attempt to catch her breath but it caught again in her throat when Carmilla latched onto her jawline. 

Carmilla pawed at her shirt and Laura quickly shrugged it off, burrowing her fingers into the tangle of brunette hair. The dark haired vampire bit down on Laura’s throat, sucking it gently and releasing it with a quiet pop. 

“Carm…” That was all Laura managed to get out before falling under the vampire’s lips and forgetting how to speak. Carmilla reached a hand around Laura’s chest, fumbling with the clasp of her bra. In the exact moment it had unlatched, a dark haired, wide eyed and bushy tailed man burst in through the door. 

Laura screeched and yanked the closest thing near her, which happened to be her Harry Potter blanket, and wrapped it tightly around her exposed chest. Carmilla bore arrows through his head, annoyance laced in her face. “God, doesn’t anyone in this awful place know how to knock?” She growled, stepping gently off Laura but storming away into the bathroom.

“Kirsch, wh-what are you doing here?” She gurgled and cleared her throat, snuggling deeper into her blanket, ears burning red. 

Kirsch was still standing dumbfounded in the doorway much like a dazed Forrest Gump. “S…sorry about that, little nerd hottie, I…I just came by because I saw your video you uploaded and I wanted to let you know that while I was dudescorting the last girl on campus the other night, I saw this one chick going off by herself…” He shook his head clearing away the burning image he had walked in on.

Laura heard the shower click on and looked up surprised at Kirsch. “Really?” He nodded very enthusiastically and Laura swore if he were a dog, his tail would be wagging a mile a minute. 

“Could I maybe ask you some questions…once I, uh, get a shirt on?” She implored, standing awkwardly; the blanket a cape on her small frame. “Yeah, totally.” Kirsch made his way to Carmilla’s bed and sat on the edge facing away from Laura as she rebuttoned up her shirt. Swiping up her pencil and notepad, her ears still burning and a much needed cold shower in mind, Laura sat in her desk chair and swiveled to face a puppy-faced Kirsch.

“So start from when you were dudescorting this…chick…”


	8. Puppies and Kittens

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Kirsch is questioned

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry about slow updates guys. I'll try to squeeze in chapters every chance I get. Thanks for all the love and support too! Also the episode thurday? I locked myself in my room and refused to talk to anyone. haha. Enjoy, my little creampuffs! ^w^
> 
> Tumblr:glitterypuppyswiftcakes

Laura’s hand looped sloppily across the notepad she had balanced on one knee. She shoved another cookie in her mouth listening intently to Kirsch babble about the ‘super-hot chick with the weird cat allergy’.

“So there I was, with this mega hottie, heading back to her dorm, when I saw the other chick walking down some dark path. I mean I didn’t think anything of it since I was sure one of the other bros had it covered. But I didn’t see any…” He trailed off, his eyebrows scrunching together. He smacked a hand to his face. “Dammit, I should have gone after her.” 

Laura felt her heart break a little at Kirsch’s sad, glassy puppy eyes. She set the notepad down, sticking her pencil behind her ear and gave him an awkward side hug. “Kirsch, there’s no way you could have known what was going to happen.”

He sniffled a little and may or may not have used Laura’s shoulder as a tissue. “It’s just that after SJ died…I just wanted to keep everyone safe.” Once he heard the shower click off, Kirsch backed away from the uncomfortable hug. “I just don’t want to lose anyone again.”

Shifting slightly and interlinking his fingers, Kirsch stared at the owl lamp over Laura’s bed. “She loved owls…She used to have the owl shirt and I used to tease her about it because the eyes were over her…” He gestured to his chest and smiled painfully. 

Laura noticed how his eyes became more puffy and reddened and she placed a comforting hand on his shoulder. Glancing sideways at the clock, and then over her shoulder at the still closed bathroom door, Laura pondered whether to tell Kirsch to hurry up because she had a lit paper due soon and a “study” sesh with Carmilla or to continue to let him reminisce. 

Kirsch dragged a heavy hand underneath his dribbling nose but then sat up straighter when he realized he was caught under Laura’s gaze. “Anyway,” He coughed slightly clearing away some of his depression, his voice stronger. “On my way back to the Zetas, I heard this screaming. Personally I thought it was someone getting it on and thought Theo had it covered since he was the last one out…” 

Laura plucked the pencil from her ear and jotted down a slapdash rendition of Kirsch’s report. “Hold on. So…Theo…he was supposed to be…‘dudescorting’ this girl?” She inquired, an eyebrow quirked. Kirsch nodded solemnly staring down at his hands.

“Well, I’m not entirely sure because he said he had ‘someone’ covered. I don’t think he ever mentioned specifically who.” Kirsch scratched the back of his head attempting to use his lack brain to dig up anything Theo may have mentioned. 

“Don’t you guys keep like…I don’t know…an organized list or something?” Laura queried, not surprised if they didn’t. 

Kirsch began tapping his foot absentmindedly on the polished floorboards Perry had scrubbed clean multiple times. One of groaned with a hollow bellow. “No, we don’t have a list. Lists are for squares. We sorta just help whatever hottie needs us,” His eyes trailed over Laura’s unmade bed and then to her shelves which were stocked with small nerdy collectibles. Kirsch’s eyes suddenly locked onto a glossy poster clinging to the wall.

“Wait a second,” He stood quickly, gaping and advanced quickly to the other side of the room. Laura cocked her head, an utter look of confusion etched on her face.   
Kirsch tapped the poster with a knobby finger. It had a small kitten who was scampering after a ball of brightly colored yarn. Its fur was filled with rich shades from a buttercream palette. Hovering above the kitten were thick, swooping inspirational words: ‘DON’T STOP CHASING YOUR DREAMS. LIVE YOUR LIFE.’ It was very generic but kittens sure did make Laura’s heart melt.

"Live your life. Live." He spun around quickly to face Laura, his eye widening. "It was Olivia." At breakneck speed, Laura scribbled down the name.

"I-I remember Theo said something about Olivia, I just-" Kirsch smacked a hand to his face repeatedly, thinking with every fiber of his brain capacity. His cheek started to turn a flaming pink. 

Laura stood quickly and wrapped a firm hand around Kirsch's wrist. "Kirsch stop! Hitting yourself isn't going to help you remember." He yelped in surprise and wrenched his arm away from Laura's deathly tight grasp. "Dude! Ow! How'd you get so strong?" He gingerly rubbed at the reddening marks that began to appear in the shape of Laura’s small fingers. 

"Oh my god, Kirsch, I'm so sorry!" She very quickly, much to Kirsch's astonishment, ran to the small fridge and yanked a miniature container of Ben and Jerry's ice cream off of its shelf. 

"It’s cool…And how the hell did you get that fast?" Kirsch shook his head dumbstruck and took the carton from Laura, placing it lightly over his wrist. 

Laura bit the inside of her cheek trying not to crack a smile. It amused her how ignorant Kirsch could be sometimes. "My dad used to take me to the park every winter when the pond froze over so we could play hockey. We used to see who could get to the other end quickest and have a small game. We'd always go for hot chocolate after." She confessed, covering up the fact that she was a tiny bloodsucker. But smiling from relishing in the memory made it all but unbelievable in Kirsch's mind. 

"Your dad sounds really cool. My dad was never around much." He trailed off, adjusting the ice cream a bit but seeming to calm down some. 

"I'm sorry about your dad." Laura replied dolefully. Kirsch shrugged it off coolly. "It's okay. I never actually knew him and mom always went off about how monogamy was always so unrealistic to him. But I don't understand why he thought wood wasn't real..."

Laura's face twisted with sorrow and pity for the man child. "Oh...Yeah also...my dad is far from cool." Kirsch narrowed his eyes in mock disbelief and Laura motioned for him to join her beside her bed. She reached a small hand under the mattress and pulled out a gallon sized Ziploc bag filled with odd extremities.

Setting the ice cream down in the heap of her unmade comforter, he took the bag from her and examined it up close. 

"Bear spray? Dude, it's like the middle of winter. And why are there like...a hundred of them? Pepper spray...mace..a freaking taser? Bro, is that a rainbow knife?" Laura stifled a laugh at the sudden spark of enthusiasm and excitement from Kirsch. "This is so cool!"

"Tell that to my overprotective father." Laura suggested matter-of-factly. "Like Betty once said, he had me 'in a hamster ball'. I'm just glad he let me out to come live here."  
Kirsch's ears pricked at the escape of the word 'live' from Laura's lips. "I remember now, bro!" "Really?" Laura bounded quickly over to her notepad, snatching up her pencil. "Okay, tell me what you remember."

"Okay. I remember I was on my way out to dudescort the last hottie of a...eh 7.5." He confirmed to himself, Laura rolling her eyes but jotting it down anyway. 

"Theo said he had the last chic covered. He said her name was Olivia. You know now that I think about it, he was always going on and on about her. You'd think he would have made a move by now..." He stopped, his own words registering for once in his brain. "Wait. Do you think he..." "RAAAWWRR!"

Laura swore in that moment she jumped high enough to scale over Danny. Kirsch nearly had a heart attack and doubled over in a huffing fit, a chuckling Carmilla standing only a few feet behind them. 

"Holy fuck, Carm!" Laura growled, her heart still racing and her hands growing clammy. 

Carmilla stood smugly from her successful sneak attack, her dark wavy hair sporting crystalized beads of water. Her arms were folded over a snug fitting black V-neck and she had on a pair of Laura’s plaid pajama bottoms. 

"What? Odie over here ruined all of our fun." She squinted her eyes threateningly toward Kirsch. "Sorry about that, Garfield. Want me to bake you some lasagna to make up for it?" He was back up from coughing harshly on the ground. 

Carmilla bared her fangs mockingly at Kirsch, advancing on him. "Sure thing, my poor, poor boy. Just make sure to layer some extra blood, that'll sure give it a zing!" 

Laura watched engrossed as Kirsch struggled to come up with a good comeback. "Um...I mean I don't know where I would find any but...yeah! Scrooge McVampire!" He faltered at such a nonthreatening level that made Carmilla double over with a fit of snickers. 

"Kirsch, it's not even Christmas yet and that was my-" Laura was cut off as Carmilla heaved herself up again, addressing Kirsch wickedly. "So you'll really make me lasagna?" Kirsch glared at her and apologized to Laura that he had to go for some indecipherable reason. "Totally!" He said trying to sound menacing as he stepped out of the doorframe. "You hotties have a nice day!" 

Laura couldn't fight any longer as both she and Carmilla fell back onto the bed, deep laughter filling the room. "What a complete dimwit!" Carmilla rolled over to face Laura on her side. 

She slung an arm around Laura’s waist pulling her in tighter. "I missed you, Cupcake." Laura let out a puff of amusement. "Carm, you were in the shower for like 20 minutes." Carmilla traced her thumb across her roommates face, "Yeah but in there, I couldn't do this." She slowly closed the gap between their lips and Laura smiled into their kiss. "You are unbelievable."

 

After a few more soft kisses, Laura suggested that they cuddle up under her Hogwarts blanket. Even more surprising was when Carmilla suggested watching Doctor Who on Laura's laptop. It wasn’t like Carmilla actually liked the show, she just enjoyed the way Laura's eyes sparkled with joy when she watched it...right?

But after three consecutive episodes and Laura falling asleep halfway through the third one, Carmilla clicked the next episode button hiding a smile. 

"Allons-y." Carmilla whispered in the darkness remembering her vampiric youth, following after Maman and her sister, Mattie, in the Palace of Versailles. She closed her eyes picturing precisely each and every chandelier and each stride she took as she danced with her sister. 

"You are such a dork." A husky and sleepy voice called out in the silence. "Well," Carmilla tried her best to impersonate the Tenth Doctor. She bumped noses with Laura who had fallen back into a dreamy state. She ran a hand through her honey colored hair and pushed play. 

 

Laura tossed and turned through another nightmare. This time something was chasing her. She couldn't tell exactly what it was but whatever it was was advancing quickly on her heels. 

Suddenly flashing back into reality, Laura's eyes burst open, a thin layer of sweat covering her body. And something sticky?

She glanced under the covers and groaned when she saw the spilled tub of ice cream soaking into her sheets. Kirsch. She'd deal with it later. Right now, Laura was too comfortable where she lay. Carmilla's hair was draped over half of her face but she didn't mind. 

Carmilla's scent wrapped around Laura engulfing her in the aroma of wet leaves, melting snow, chocolate ice cream and...blood? 

Midnight snacks were always good. As in the snack cakes Laura kept that Carmilla occasionally filled with blood as special treats. 

Suddenly remembering the last time she had smelled blood, with Danny on the roof, she sat up and grabbed her phone. She flipped it open expecting to see hundreds of missed calls from Danny but only her home screen flashed nearly blinding her. Maybe Danny had forgotten to call. Or got stuck over with the Summers. 

She placed her phone over her bed and snuggled back down next to Carmilla. Closing her eyes she tried to distract herself with positive thoughts but worries kept fluttering in her head like a flock of birds. 

What if something horrible had happened to Danny too?


	9. Sugar spice and everything...broody?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which there are conflicts and fluff

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Spent the weekend writing c: Enjoy, Cupcakes!
> 
> Tumblr: glitterypuppyswiftcakes

After throwing her comforter off in sticky sweet frustration to add to her pile of things that needed to be washed in the laundry room, Laura wrestled her phone still worried about Danny. Nothing. 

The exposure from not being under the blanket left Carmilla in a semi shivering state. Not to mention the carpet of fuzz stuck on her legs she hadn't noticed yet from the melted ice cream. 

Completely ignoring the fact that it was nearly 4 PM and Laura had yet to interrogate Theo, Carmilla rolled over bringing her roommate closer to her. 

"Mornin'," Carmilla yawned sleepily spraying Laura's face with a warm misting of morning breath. "Ew, Carm, go brush your teeth," Laura giggled placing a hand over the vampire's mouth. Carmilla narrowed her eyes playfully and licked the palm of Laura's hand. "Hey!"

Carmilla bowled her over playfully, static electricity dancing in her frazzled hair. She pinned her arms to the bed and simply stared he down. "Tuna breath," Laura mumbled mischievously blowing air up to Carmilla's face. Carmilla cleared it away with a small high pitched sneeze...right in Laura's face. "Snot face," she grinned triumphantly at Laura's mixed look of disgust and adoration.

"Your sneezes are adorable…aren’t you supposed to be some centuries old badass?" Laura mewed, attempting to lift herself high enough to place a kiss on her roommate's hovering lips. Right before they met, Carmilla pulled back biting her lip. "They are not adorable. Fear my evil sneezes!" She sniffed, struggling to tickle her nose just enough to spray Laura again. 

Laura on the other hand was bubbling over with warmth and lust. With her love goggles fastened securely over her head, blinding her hazel eyes, Laura pushed Carmilla off and flipped her over so that she was on top. 

Carmilla's leg clung awkwardly to the fabric on Laura's boxers. "What the...?" She shimmied out from under her roommate and sat up in the bed, examining her chocolate coated shins. Her pajama bottoms had been rolled all the way up to her thighs from the unsettling sticky hot night it had become stuffed under the thick layers of blanket. 

"Laura...why the frilly hell is there chocolate in the bed?" Her face twisted in disgust as she eyed the patches of dark fuzz on her legs. Fur she could deal with but this made her look humiliating. "Were you watching another episode of Orange is The New Black without me?"

"No, it was for Kirsch..." Laura's face suddenly curled into a smirk and she began to wiggle in a tiny dance as she sang, "Chocolate and vanilla swirl," She poked a chuckling Carmilla in the side. "Right, Caramel?"

Carmilla rolled her eyes, striding to the bathroom to wash the cocoa from her calves. "Right, Dandelion."

 

Carmilla pulled on a shiny black boot, tying the laces tight on the edge of her bed. She had already bundled herself up to the neck with thick layers and her infamous leather jacket. The cold had always really bothered her. 

After showering off the chocolate ice cream, Laura waltzed out in a fresh owl sweater, her hair in loose damp waves. She perched on her blanketless bed reaching for the third time that evening for her minuscule flip phone. The home screen of a cross eyed Laura and a grumpy Carmilla selfie flashed before her eyes. Worry churned in her belly.   
She looked up ready to ask Carmilla if they should go looking for her when she noticed that she was already dressed to leave. "Where are you going?" 

Carmilla looked up briefly before quickly returning to shoving on a second boot. "Out." 

Laura's eyebrows furrowed with confusion. "Out?" Her Canadian accent shone through thickly; one of the many quirks Carmilla absolutely loved about her. 

Carmilla stood stuffing her hands in her pockets and briskly strolled to the door. "Yeah, just...out." She pried it open, a heavy groan echoing in the chilly room. 

"Do you want me to come or-" 

"No." Carmilla abruptly cut her off, halfway out the door. "I just...need some time to myself..." Laura's heart sank with confusion. "Okay, bye. I love you." But Carmilla had already gone. 

 

Laura puttered around the room creating different scenarios of where the hell Carmilla was going. It was nowhere near her birthday so she wasn't planning any surprises. And it was freezing outside. Laura knew how much Carmilla hated the cold which puzzled her to think why on earth she would go out in the negative degree weather. 

She was suddenly ripped from her thoughts when her phone began vibrating, Dancing Queen blasting from the speakers. She raced to her bed nearly tripping over herself and threw open her phone. 

"Danny??" 

"Laura. Oh my god, they're all dead."

Laura's heart pounded threatening to burst from her chest. 

"Wait, what?? Who? Danny who's dead?" She practically shouted, fear climbing up her throat. 

"T-the Summers. They never came and I...I went to go get them and I found the group. Slaughtered. Oh god, Laura, there were eight of them. I-" 

The phone crackled and Laura heard the end tone. Palms sweating, she redialed, her phone sliding in her slippery fingers. "Come on, come on," Laura's breathing rate increased with every ring back tone.

The phone chirped to life, Danny's voice returning once again to Laura's ear. 

"My friends, Laura..." Danny's voice choked with extreme emotion. "They're completely shredded and..." Laura heard the slight crunching of snow through the speaker with her advanced vampire hearing. "There's so much blood. And..." A muffled 'What the fuck?' from Danny echoed through the call. 

"What?" Laura's grip on her phone was so tight her knuckles went an even paler shade than normal.   
"I think...I think there's salted herring?" Laura shook her head even more confused with this than with Carmilla's mysterious outing. Her thoughts immediately went to the Zetas and Theo. 

"Oh crap," Laura shook with a tremor of absolute panic. She was almost certain that Theo had to be at least a part of the murders. "Wha-" "Danny, I'll be right over." She went to hang up the phone but stopped when she realized that she didn't know where Danny was exactly. "Where did you say you were?" 

"The little grove across the crater on the North Quad."

 

Fully suited in a thick armor of warm layers, backpack slung over her shoulder, Laura reached for the glittering doorknob. As soon as her fingers had closed around it, Carmilla had burst through the door.

"Whoa!" Laura fell back half in surprise and the other from her heavy snow gear and backpack. She lay on the ground like an upturned turtle. 

Flailing a bit with struggle, Laura tried to sit herself up but was completely unsuccessful. A pale hand reached down and Laura thankfully grasped it sitting up. "Thanks Ca-" 

She froze, pure terror flickering in her dark espresso eyes. 

Stained up and down Carmilla's arms and all over her shirt were thick streaks of scarlet. Laura quickly scooted backwards eyeing Carmilla with consternation and suspicion. 

An unfamiliar icy chill rippled down Laura's neck at the sight of the blood bathed vampire. "Carmilla, w-what the hell?"

Carmilla looked taken aback from Laura's sudden jumpiness until she glanced down at herself. "Oh." She nonchalantly shrugged and turned toward their small mini fridge. 

Laura gaped in utter disbelief at how Carmilla simply brushed off the fact that she was coated head to toe in someone's blood. "Oh? Carmilla, where were you? You look like an extra from Carrie!" 

"Oh, so I do." Carmilla surveyed her hands with a look of blasé, flipping them over before sticking them in the fridge to retrieve two blood bags.

Laura's mouth hung open in horror from how disaffected Carmilla was with the whole situation. "Why won't you tell me where you were? And why the fuck are you covered in blood?!" Laura threw her hands around in a panicky emphasis. 

"Well, I have to keep some of my secrets. Otherwise I'll lose my air of mystery, won't I?" And then Carmilla was gone in a puff of thick black smoke, leaving a shaking and skeptical Laura on the floor. 

 

By the time Laura had trekked her way clumsily across the icy campus to the small grove, her heart had finally calmed down. Although, her mind raced with possible sources the blood on Carmilla had come from and where she went. She didn't like how Carmilla kept things from her. They were supposed to share everything with each other, right?

Danny stood with her arms folded tightly, shivering in the harsh winds a foot in front of the massacre. As soon as Laura had crossed to her, she enveloped Danny in a warm embrace.

Danny didn't say much and Laura didn't blame her. Her eyes had glazed over and she only stared off toward the Zeta Omega Mu dorms. 

The bodies were completely indecipherable from being brutally shredded and Laura wondered that if Theo was behind this why the hell would he lacerate an entire group of students to nothing? 

A slight tickle of an iron tang made its way to Laura's nose and made her stomach growl. Cautiously glancing up to see if Danny had noticed, which she hadn't, Laura let out a tiny sigh and grabbed Danny's arm pulling her forward. "Standing around won’t help us figure out who the hell did this."

Danny nodded slightly and recomposed herself. "You're right, let's go give those meatheads a piece of our minds." 

 

Laura scampered off behind Danny and caught up to her, awkwardly trying to match her striding pace. She quickly filled her in about what Kirsch had said about Theo and Olivia, causing Danny's face to match the color of her hair in a burning rage. 

By the time they had reached the building, Danny burst through the door without even a hesitation to knock. Laura was right on Danny's heels as she heard a "D-Bear!" from Kirsch and a "Can it, lover boy. Where the hell is Theo?" from Danny. 

"Whoa, Summer Psycho, he's out back shoveling. Hey do you maybe want to-" Danny barged past him in a flurry of rage. "Never." She growled and Laura stopped to apologize for the ginger, seeing the hurt in Kirsch's puppy eyes. 

As soon as Danny had Theo locked under her glare once they were outside, she stomped over to him, forcefully grabbing his shovel and holding it like a baseball bat. "What the hell is wrong with you, you sick fuck?"

Fire burned in Danny's eyes as she moved closer, ready to swing with all her might at Theo's next words. "Danny, geez!" Laura tried to grab a hold on the shovel but Danny shrugged her off like an annoying gnat. 

Theo held his hands up in mock surrender, a smirk forming on his lips. "If by sick you mean my cold," He coughed slightly, milking the effect. "Then yeah. Total sick fuck here." He reached for the shovel but Danny swatted at his glove.

"Seriously? We know you murdered Olivia and the Summers." Danny's fists curled tightly around the shovel and she gritted her teeth. 

Theo faltered a bit under her gaze. "Olivia's dead?" His hands dropped to his sides and all hostility was lost. He squeezed the bridge of his nose. 

"Don't play stupid. We've got evidence. Right, Laura?"

Laura glanced up, flicking her eyes between them. "Uh, yeah. Kirsch said you were the last one to go pining after Olivia and there was salted herring at the crime scene." 

"Okay, please. First of all, why the hell would I murder the only girl I've ever cared about and your psychotic friends, and second, who the fuck leaves salted herring at a crime scene?" Theo glared menacingly at the towering red head in front of him. 

"Apparently idiotic Zetas," Danny spat, narrowing her eyes. "Obviously she didn't want to be with you and you murdered her in cold blood. The Summers were coming over to get her body for further examination so you took them out before they got the opportunity." 

Theo stiffened and wrenched the shovel out of Danny's hands. "Not my fault they were too stupid to survive." 

Danny bore arrows into his eyes. "I swear to god-" Theo cut her off with a slight shove to the stomach with the head of the shovel. "Look who's talking Miss 'I was the first one to every crime scene'. How do we know you didn't kill everyone?" With one last shove, he turned and stormed inside, slamming the door. Laura heard the faint click of the lock. 

 

After a raging Danny had gone her separate way, Laura slowly made her way back to the dorms. The evening was slowly creeping to darkness as the stars began to appear. A claw scratch of a moon hung in the crisp inky sky. 

Laura was completely and utterly confused and frustrated. She huffed a foggy breath of air going over everything that had happened in the short evening. 

Danny had discovered the massacre of her eight shredded friends accompanied with salted herring. Carmilla had mysteriously gone somewhere and returned covered in blood. Theo was a top suspect and didn't even try to deny it. And Danny had been the first to appear at every murder...

When she had finally made it back to her dorm and shut the door, she heaved her backpack off with utter defeat. "Hey, cutie." Laura whipped around, her heart thrumming like a hummingbird's wings.   
"Uh...hey!" She shouldered past Carmilla and hopped into her bed, grumbling eternally when she spotted her yellow pillow all the way over in Carmilla's bed. 

"Where were you, out so late?" Carmilla padded to the foot of Laura's bed and sat down awkwardly. "I could ask you the same question." Laura shot back, turning toward the wall. She felt the weight lift from her mattress and the shuffling of Carmilla's socked feet. 

"If you really want to know," She called and then returned, crouching down as Laura flipped back over to face her. Carmilla's hands were behind her back and she had a different, clean shirt on. "I just thought that you seemed really stressed and overwhelmed lately...so I went over to Perry's and spent some time baking and..." 

Carmilla brought the small item she had cupped behind her back forward, revealing a plump red velvet cupcake. "They're red velvet cupcakes. We whipped them up with the extra blood bags." 

Laura sat up, noticing for the first time the neatly folded comforter at the end of her bed. Her heart swam with warmth as her head racked with guilt. She carefully took the fragile cake from Carmilla's outstretched hand. 

"Carmilla Karnstein, I swear, you are the cutest." She took a bite and rolled her eyes back in ecstasy. "Ohmygod," she mumbled through a mouthful, spraying crumbs everywhere and then stuffing the remainder in her mouth. 

Carmilla plucked 2 more cakes from the counter and handed another to her roommate. "Carm, these are amazing!" 

Laura giggled at the thought of Perry and Carmilla actually getting along long enough to bake something so delicious. "I can't believe you guys didn't end up burning the entire campus down like in 1904." 

Carmilla rolled her eyes swiping a finger through the frosting on top of her cupcake. "Well, there were some times where I wanted to shove her in the oven like that crazy witch in Hansel and Gretel. But I knew that they'd make you happy, so I had to suck it up and deal with 'Mircalla Karnstein, you're getting flour everywhere! Get out of the batter!' Let's just say that spatulas really hurt the knuckles."

Laura threw her head back in a fit of laughter between Carmilla's impression of Perry and the cuteness that was her roommate. When she came up for air, her nose was met with a glob of frosting. "Hey!"

Laura went to swipe it off but Carmilla stopped her, taking her wrists in both hands and pinning her to the bed. She teasingly bent down, closing her eyes lazily. She swept a slow, warm tongue over Laura's sweet frosting tipped nose and peppered kisses down to her lips. 

Laura could taste the sweet mixture of the sugar and blood and allowed Carmilla to take complete control. The events of the day quickly flew from her mind with every lingering kiss. Soon her body had been as decorated as the delicate cakes in shades of blues and purples, moans escaping her frosting swept lips. Laura never heard the vibration after vibration of her phone as her shirt was pulled from her head, lust filling her entire body.


	10. Brownies

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Lafontaine has Laura come down to the labs

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'M SORRY THIS CHAPTER IS SO SHORT, I'VE HAD A STRESSFUL WEEK. BUT I PROMISE THE NEXT CHAPTER WILL BE PACKED FULL. YOU'LL SEE WHY AT THE END OF THIS CHAPTER. 
> 
> tumblr: glitterypuppyswiftcakes

Laura's alarm clocked blared to life in the surprisingly early AM. She grumbled a bit from the harsh light now filtering through the window. Carmilla was curled up in a tight ball facing the wall.

Hitting the OFF button, Laura quietly tip toed out of bed, careful not to wake the sleeping Carmilla. Her roommate was always very crabby in the early morning. 

She pulled out a cool bag from the fridge, pouring it in her TARDIS mug. Sticking it to her lips and taking a large gulp, Laura remembered why she'd wanted to wake up early today. Lafontaine said they needed a little help down in the lab with the DNA samples and evidence. 

Laura watched the sleeping Carmilla growl slightly in her dream while batting her arms in a slow rhythm. She chuckled thinking about how possible it was that Carmilla was dreaming about a ball of yarn. 

Sitting her mug down, Laura made her way to her wardrobe, digging a bit before rescuing a black Hogwarts sweatshirt. She pulled it on along with a dark indigo pair of jeans.

The air was sharp in their room and it stung Laura's nose. Her teeth chattered severely as she took a last swig of the blood. She could feel some of it in the corner of her lips and swiped it with a careful sleeve of her sweatshirt. 

Then sun glittered off of the snow outside, reflecting bright hues into their room. Sunlight streamed brilliantly over Carmilla's bed, causing her to whimper slightly in her sleep. Laura quickly threw the curtains closed, cutting off any filtering light. 

Then, after sitting her mug in their sink, which was way too full of dirty dishes, Laura padded softly to Carmilla's bed, placing a small peck on her warm cheek.

"Bye, Carm." Her whisper hung in the icy air as she turned, leaving the sleeping vampire to her dreams. 

 

The laboratory was no better than Laura's dorm. She swore she could see ice chipped on some of the sinks dotted around the room. 

An assorted array of various shaped beakers and test tubes sat around the room, as well as odd looking tools and several lab stations. 

Lafontaine was sat in front of a microscope, goggles over their head and a lab coat wrapped snugly around their frame. They were studying something very intently, as they didn't notice Laura's presence.   
Laura tried tapping her foot a bit louder than normal to draw attention to herself and not to spook her friend too hard. Lafontaine glanced up from their investigation, glad to see Laura. 

"Hey, L, come here." 

As soon as Laura had moved closer to Lafontaine, they shoved her face in the microscope. "Ow!" Laura cried, her eye impaled by one of the eyepieces. 

"Sorry," Lafontaine mumbled, a thick stack of reports in their hand. They flipped through them for a moment, concentrating hard on the unreadable scribbles. "So check this out," Lafontaine adjusted the focus of their microscope so Laura could see what they were talking about. 

When Laura's eyes had adjusted, ignoring the throbbing pain, she could just make out a bunch of tiny dots and what looked to be a brick wall. 

“Skin cells,” Lafontaine answered as Laura looked up at her questionably. “From the girl on the roof. With a little help from the guys, we found a match. Her name’s-“   
“Olivia.” Laura nodded and Lafontaine stared back flabbergasted. “How did you kn-”

“Kirsch, astonishingly. He said he saw her with Theo last. Danny and I went to talk to him yesterday and he didn’t even try to deny it.” She rubbed gently at her swelling eye, yawning. “But then again, Danny was at all of the crime scenes, like he said…” She trailed off. 

Lafontaine scratched the back of their ginger head. “So you think Theo did it? Or Danny?” They set the papers down to join Laura back at the microscope. “I don’t even know anymore. Everyone seems so suspicious. I don’t know who to trust.”

Lafontaine shrugged, moving back to the stack of papers. “I guess I don’t really either. I mean, it really could be anyone.” They shuffled the papers becoming slightly frustrated. “I don’t know where those guys put the result papers. They came in this morning with it and I was too busy getting the skin figured out so I told them to just sit it on the table. Think they did? Nope.” Laura helped Lafontaine look around for a beat before they mumbled, “It was pretty important too. They said that they’d gotten the DNA pulled from one of the skin samples that wasn’t a match to it. I mean this could really be a break through if I could just find-”

All of a sudden there was an unexpected knock on the door and a curly haired ginger head popped in. “Hello, Lafontaine. Oh! Hi, Laura!”

Perry pushed through the door in a quaint manner, a tinfoil covered tray in her hands. Lafontaine immediately sprung up from their stool, darting to their best friend. “Ooh! What do we have today?” They picked at the shiny foil but Perry swatted their hand away playfully.

“Today’s brownie day, remember?” Lafontaine’s eyebrows knit, deep in thought before they finally realized the day. “Oh, yeah! Today’s Tuesday! Show me the goods, Per.” They rubbed their hands together, looking thoroughly pleased. Perry unveiled the freshly baked, still warm brownies and Lafontaine wasted no time in whisking a few into their mouth, crumbs spewing everywhere. 

Perry grumbled at the ridiculous mess Lafontaine was making as they grabbed a few more, making their way back to the lab station. “Want a brownie, Laura?” Perry asked politely, stepping carefully to avoid the chunks of chocolate littering the floor. 

“Sure.” She took up Perry’s offer graciously and plucked a particularly large brownie off the sheet. Laura popped it in her mouth, her eyes once again rolling back in sweet pleasure. Swallowing so she wouldn’t spew bits everywhere like Lafontaine, Laura proceeded to praise Perry’s baking skills. 

“Perry, how do you even cook so well? I can barely make toast without burning it.” Perry’s cheeks flooded the same color as her hair at Laura’s approbation. “Every year for Chanukah, my mother and I used to have these cookie bake offs. Lafontaine used to be the judge. I’d always win them over with candy cane bits, though.” She threw a small wink Lafontaine’s way and they smiled. “Corn syrup and diglycerides, baby.”

Laura’s face lit up with amusement as the two gingers reminisced their history together. She dusted her hands on her jeans as Perry grabbed the old broom and dustpan from beside the wall. Perry began sweeping up all of the crumbs as Lafontaine resumed to hunting down the paper in the enormous stack. 

“I bet Carm was a nuisance in the kitchen. How many times do you think you hit her hand when she tried to stick a finger in the batter?” Laura smirked thinking about how adorable it was the two of them spent the afternoon baking.

The broom stopped as Perry paused, looking at Laura like she was crazy, “What?” Laura cocked her head, taken a back. “You guys made cupcakes yesterday. Uh…red velvet? With blood?” Perry’s face may as well have 100 pieces written across her forehead because she was utterly puzzled. “No…yesterday I spent the day cleaning up our room and finishing a paper...I didn’t see Carmilla at all…” 

Laura’s eyes widened to the size of porcelain dishes, her breath caught in her throat. Her entire body felt icy and numb, her heart thrumming a mile a minute. If Carmilla wasn’t with Perry yesterday, then where had she been?

All previously discarded accusations for the suspicions of Carmilla came flooding back to Laura like a tsunami. The waves crashed over her and she felt violently ill at the thought of Carmilla lying to her and being a prime suspect for the murders. Dropping everything, she sprinted from the lab, ignoring the yells from her friends and the way her tears stung against the frosty air.

 

Laura paced outside of her dorm door, wondering how the fuck she was supposed to confront Carmilla about this. How could she? Laura clenched her fists, hot angry tears bubbling from her eyes. She had completely forgotten about her now black eye, which started to thrum again as she wiped the tears away. Cleaning herself up a bit and taking a step forward, she roughly thrust through the door. Looking around wildly for her roommate, she was horrified to not see her anywhere. “God dammit.” Laura whispered, gritting her teeth. Now where was she?

Laura stalked over to her bed, snatching up her cell phone to give the vampire a call, when she realized she had several missed calls from Danny. Hurt and confused, Laura placed the phone to her ear, listening intently to Danny’s many voicemails. 

“Hey, Laura. I was wondering if you wanted to come with me again to talk to Theo. I know he’s behind this….Um…The Summers just finished the ceremony for our friends. So, if you’re feeling up to it. Um…Yeah...See you later.” CLICK.

Laura swiped a tear escapee from her cheek, pressing the next voicemail. 

“Hey, Laura, Danny again. So, you like, never answer your calls.” Danny laughed awkwardly into the phone. “So I’m just going to head out by myself and deal with Theo alone…Talk to you later, Hollis.” CLICK.

There were only two more voice messages left. Laura hit the next one.

“Hi, so um…I’m out walking to the Zetas’ house and….I don’t know, I kind of think someone’s following me. Uh…I keep hearing loud crunching in the snow. I…I’m kind of scared Laura. I’m gonna go, in case it’s listening.” CLICK. Danny’s voice was barely more than a whisper and rushed at that. 

Laura’s palms grew sweaty as she pressed the last message, her fingers slipping on the number pad. 

“I swear to god, Laura, I’m being followed. I hear this heavy breathing and it’s really freaking me out and-“ Danny was cut off as a loud roar erupted from the other end of the phone. She could hear Danny’s loud guttural screams as the growls continued ferociously. Laura stood shaking in pure horror, listening in on her friend being mauled. She knew exactly what produced those growls. 

A giant black cat.


	11. Creampuffs

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which a lot of shit goes down

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys! Here's one of the bigger chapters! I have more plot ideas but the main one is almost over...should I continue with this story? Also I leave in an hour for three teeth extractions for my braces :o ahhh. Enjoy creampuffs and thanks for all of the amazing feedback!
> 
> Tumblr:glitterypuppyswiftcakes

Time seemed to slow down to the speed of molasses. Laura's minuscule phone slipped out from between her fingers, hitting the floor with a loud crack. Sweat fizzled at her forehead and clung to the base of her neck, caking the darker strands with worry. Her feet were firmly stuck to the hardwood as if someone had glued her in place. Laura swore that her heart was just one long strung out beat for how quick it pulsed. 

A sea of terror seemed to wash over her, stripping off the layers of happiness she had felt just only the night before. She was caught in the middle of an emotional hurricane, the weight of everything boring down on her like a heavy downpour. Laura was drowning in lies and confusion, anger and hurt. 

And she was shaking so bad. Laura felt as though she were trapped in a freezer for how intense each convulse wracked over her body. A dark horror seemed to creep over her with the new information from the messages. Her skin crawled with thousands upon thousands of parasites of worries. It stung like salt to a wound. Reaping and haunting her inner self was the gruesome thought of the person she cared most about, the person she loved, lying to her and murdering so many innocent lives. 

Laura didn't know what she felt. All she knew is that she felt like a batter, so many different ingredients tossed in to create a big mess. And the cookie cutter image she had of Carmilla wasn’t helping either. Everything was supposed to be warm and sweet, not burnt and broken. It was all crumbling before her eyes, which were now filled to the brim with hot, salty tears.

Laura had no idea what to do. She didn't know anyone who could possibly help her.   
Frustration flowed from her glassy eyes, anger taking control and replacing the fear that pumped through her. 

Amidst her rage, Dancing Queen began blaring from somewhere below her. Now what?  
Bending down, she snapped open the phone, almost breaking it in half. "Hello?" She growled through the speaker. 

"Whoa, Laura. You okay?"

It was Lafontaine.

"Not really. What do you need?" Laura stomped her foot in frustration, angrily glaring at Carmilla's half of their room. 

"...So I found the result papers the guys had, you know, the one I couldn't find earlier? Well...the skin on Olivia’s skin sample that didn't match...it was Carmilla's."

Laura didn't even hang up before the phone was zooming through the air, exploding on contact with the wall. What the hell?

The boiling fury that heated within her core suddenly erupted, causing a tornado of horrendous actions Laura would not think previously she would be able to commit. 

With her vampiric super strength, things were launched off shelves, torn from walls and ripped apart. It wasn't like she meant to destroy everything. The hurricane of her emotions was in full control. She had no idea if there was an eye to it. 

When an accidental swipe to her TARDIS mug occurred, sending it plummeting to pieces, Laura realized the monster she had become. She was childish. And the tears that now welled in her eyes as she stooped down to gently take a piece in her hand weren't helping either. Throwing a tantrum wouldn't give a lick of help to the current situation. But maybe finding Danny would. 

 

Wrapped in a thick jacket, light backpack and steaming rage Laura stomped through the snow. Overhead, thousands of stars sparkled and winked down at her. Laura just grumbled thinking of how much she and Carmilla loved stargazing. Laura took a deep breath to sniff out any traces of blood, only registering the sharp, cold air. She blinked rapidly, the icy winds irritating her eyes; especially the now deep purple one from the lab incident. 

It was a frosty silence that filled the thick woods. Only the slight crunches from the snow underneath Laura's boots echoed through the night. She trudged on, mind still pounding with everything that had happened. She didn't understand why Carmilla had hurt all those people; her friend. Laura had no idea if Danny was even alive. Vexation quickly warmed her up from the harsh breeze. 

So did the sudden intake of iron that brushed the deep caverns of her nose. She froze in her tracks, ears pricked for any sounds in the dark forest. She slung her backpack from her shoulder, digging for a flashlight. Grabbing its blue handle, she flicked it on, light flooding the bright white of the snow. Backpack back on, she cast the light back and forth, walking slower and looking for anything the light would catch on. 

Small flecks of blood began to appear along the path of jumbled footsteps that Laura had suddenly noticed. And beside those tracks...large, deep paw prints cutting into the snow. Laura felt sick to her stomach. Why would Carmilla fucking do this?

The trail led Laura to a completely disturbing scene, blood and pieces of torn flesh littering the ground. The snow was disturbed so much that dead patches of grass were visible. She flared her nostrils, the intermingling scent of Danny and blood fusing in her nose. But that was all. There was no trace of the smell she longed to breathe in before all of the horror had begun. 

But where the fuck was Danny? Eyebrows knit, she bent down grazing her flashlight over the tremendous amount of scarlet that now stained the snow. 

But then she noticed that the tracks continued. Only there wasn't just one set. There were two. 

All of the snow surrounding the scene aside from the footprints was too jumbled up to tell were the paw prints led. She ignored them completely, not wanting to track down the person who had hurt her the most. Following the steps with her flashlight, Laura was led through the rest of the forest, winding through trees and occasionally spotting clumps of smothered blood on the ground. 

The flaming trail and it's accomplice of footprints walked right up to the foot of the Zeta building. Laura stood dumbfounded in frustration. 

Why did the fucking Zetas have Danny? If they had her...

Quick as a flash of lightning, Laura stalked up to the Zeta's door, kicking it in with super strength. The wood splintered and the hinges groaned in protest as the door crashed to the ground. Laura heaved an exasperated breath of air and puffed it out, looking around wildly for anyone. 

She stalked around to the first room off of her left after hearing a slight girly shriek coming from that way. 

Kirsch was sitting on the sofa wide eyed, Danny slung over his lap still dripping with blood. He was currently cradling her head in one massive paw, the other pressing an icepack to a section of her torso where a large chunk of flesh had been stripped off. 

Laura wasted no time in sprinting to Kirsch's side. "I-I-I heard her screaming and I just...I don't want to lose her, Laura. Please." Kirsch was completely broken, tears racing each other down his rosy cheeks. "W-we're not gonna lose her." Laura growled, trying to convince herself more than Kirsch and snatching the icepack from his hand, which was doing absolutely no good. 

Danny was unconscious, her mouth slightly hanging open, just enough for a thin trickle of blood to slide out. She looked like she had been sucked through a paper shredder; gaping wounds cut through her soft skin in deep claw scratches. Danny's face was as red as her hair; swollen with battered wounds and gashes, each contributing a fair amount of blood that was now leaking all over Kirsch's lap.   
Seeing Danny like this, so vulnerable and broken, made Laura quiver in fury. How dare Carmilla do this to her friend. To her. 

"We need towels. Hurry!" Laura watched menacingly as Kirsch gently placed Danny down onto the soft interior of the couch and darted into a different room. Laura's sight was blinded by tears as she slowly stroked Danny's face. "You didn't even do anything wrong..." Laura whispered, shutting her eyes against the warm salty tears that threatened to spill from her eyes. 

A sudden sharp pain pierced her left shoulder, inches from missing Danny's skull. "Dammit!" A thick accented voice cursed from behind them. Laura yelped in pain, blood gushing from the impact of the weapon the person had just sank into her flesh. She whipped around, blinking rapidly to catch the culprit. Theo stood glaring at the spear which was still lodged in Laura's arm. 

A histamine wave of shock washed over Laura, chilling her and creating a sense of heat at the puncture. Laura was shaking in pain, watching in horror at the ridiculous amount of blood spilling from her wound. 

"Sorry about that," Theo snarled unapologetically, ripping the spearhead from Laura. It was pure blissful numbness for a few seconds, but soon enough the pain rippled back to life. That's when everything came together in a giant flaming ball of pure agonizing pain, consuming her completely. 

She let out an agonizing cry, dropping onto the floor in a heap of pain. "I was aiming for your little friend here who murdered Olivia." He poised the weapon above his head, ready to strike again. "No!" Laura tried calling out but all she managed to squeeze out was a rough cough.

Before Theo could stab the unconscious Danny, he was bowled over by a large figure. "I won't let you hurt my D-Bear any more than you already have!" Kirsch howled, flipping Theo over and smashing his face into the floor.

Theo jerked his head in surprise, Kirsch triumphantly pinning him down. In the next beat, Theo had regained his composure and Kirsch was thrown from his position. Hardened, bloodied knuckles smashed into Kirsch's jaw causing a barbaric, sickening crack that pushed Kirsch to the dirty floor. He scrambled to his feet, but not quick enough, as Theo had driven another fist smack in the middle of Kirsch's face. He whimpered in pain, thick streams of crimson flowing from his battered nose. Stunned, he caught another blow right in his stomach causing him to crumple in a heap of nefarious pain. 

Theo simply laughed, reaching for the cool metal of his discarded spear. A villainous smile crept its way onto his twisted face. He tossed the weapon back and forth, prowling like a wolf up to Kirsch. "Well, well, well. Looks like Puppy here won't be able to save his girl after all."

Kirsch flashed a vexatious glance up at the towering Zeta. "That's what you think." He sputtered, locking his feeble hands around Theo's ankles, using the only amount of strength left in him to drag Theo down. 

Theo stumbled, tripping over his own feet and falling flat on his stomach. Kirsch gasped trying to catch a breath to push himself up enough to snatch the towel he had dropped in shock. His knobby fingers wrapped around the soft cloth and in one last heave, he flopped over to Theo, throwing the towel tightly around his beastly throat. 

Theo choked in surprise, struggling hard to escape the pressure; the hand clutching his spear striking a blow straight to Kirsch's calf. Kirsch bellowed a horrendous scream, but enough adrenaline rocked his atrocious body to grip the towel tighter. 

Theo flailed violently, his face morphing in panic to sickening shades of red and then blue before his head dropped down to the floor unconscious. Kirsch could still feel the weak breaths caught in Theo's lungs underneath him. Sparring his life, Kirsch ripped the cloth from Theo's throat and rolled over in defeat. His heart thumped against his chest but he managed to catch a few good breaths before turning to the two girls behind him. 

Laura was still hunched over in pain, quiet, soupy cries crawling from her throat. Kirsch heaved himself forward to Danny, his teeth grit in pain. "I-I'm gonna take Danny to g-g-get help." He shook with every word, pain shooting through his sentence. 

"K-Kirsch you can't g-go. You're...y-you're too hu-urt." Laura struggled to get to her feet but crumpled to a sobbing, bleeding mess. "D-Bear's more important. Even if...even if I die, it'll be for the r-right reasons." 

Kirsch could barely walk without tripping over his feet, blood soaking his socks from the large gash on his calf. Sputtering forward, he wrenched Danny from her unconscious state on the couch, hands wrapped as securely as they would underneath her armpits. Her torso and below dragged over the floor leaving a sticky trail of blood. 

Laura tried lifting herself from her crumpled position. "K-Kirsch let me help..." Kirsch stopped and turned to her. "No," he croaked, taking in Laura's brutal beating. "I'll come back for you." He limped badly, dragging Danny through the gaping doorframe and leaving a broken Laura. 

 

Laura knew she couldn't stay in the Zeta's house knowing that Carmilla was out there somewhere and would probably come back to finish off Danny and the damaged Kirsch. 

The white hot pain from the puncture wound had left her winded, choking for air. Searing pain pulsed with each stroke of her heart. With every muscle in her bleeding body, she wriggled herself up to a sitting position, her back pressed firmly against the velvety couch. 

Taking a deep breath, she hooked her fingernails into the plush of the cushion on her right and forced her feet to catch herself as she struggled to regain her balance. 

The blazing agony shot through her entire body as she struggled through the fight to get through the doorframe. Her wound was a fire to offset the blissful frostiness of the outside. 

With every staggering step, she felt like thousands upon thousands of cuts were being written against her shoulder blade. Fresh, hot blood stuck her shirt to the wound underneath the warmth of her jacket.   
The winds carried heavy snowflakes and ice bits which slashed maliciously against Laura's flushed face. Half of her body convulsed in violent shivers due to the cold, the other from her fatal wound. It throbbed, growing stronger with every twitch of her slowing heart. 

She had to find Kirsch and Danny. All she wanted to do was keep everyone safe. She stumbled through the flurries which were now becoming so strong that she could barely see anything in front of her. Laura was caught in a whirlwind of freezing cold snowflakes nipping at every inch of her exposed skin.   
Drops of blood flowed thickly out of the sleeve of her jacket, dotting the creamy snow. The dots slowly turned to splatters which quickly became semi-puddles. 

Laura was choking through the suffering, agonizing cries echoing through the deserted blizzard.   
"Fuck this." She collapsed under the weight of everything and everyone on her battered shoulders. Laura curled up, breath steaming and snowflakes beginning to bury her soft, torn face. 

Everything had gone wrong. Everyone was supposed to be cozied up in their dorms watching sappy Christmas movies and drinking hot chocolate, not being murdered and stabbed and...being betrayed. Laura had no comprehension on why Carmilla would jeopardize everything they had for a few shy murders. Maybe Laura had done something wrong. Maybe it was her fault. 

"It's all my fault." She whispered to the icy silence, snowflakes sticking to her long lashes and crystallizing her face. Laura took another crisp breath and then everything stopped. 

 

Carmilla slowly closed the door to her mother's old apartment, a slightly foreign spring to her step. Balanced in her opposite hand was a tray of blood filled cream puffs wrapped neatly with a sheet of silver aluminum foil. She was even humming 'You're the One That I Want' which was so out of character for her. 

She couldn't wait to get back to the dorms, snuggle up with Laura and nosh on the delectable desserts she had baked. 

Even though Carmilla absolutely despised the cold, it didn't seem to bother her as she chugged through the blizzard, intent on getting back home quickly. 

Soon enough the snow thickened to curtains and sleet poured down from the ashy buttercream sky. Carmilla sniffled as snot trailed from her rosy nose. When a particularly large glob of snot decided to roll out, Carmilla huffed hard catching much more than the scent of snow. 

The mingling scent of blood and the person she knew best reached through her nostrils, tickling her mind with sickness. Carmilla dropped the tray and cream puffs and sprinted blindly through the snow. "Laura!" 

By the time Carmilla had reached the broken and bruised Laura, blood had creeped out through the snow, spreading like wildfire. Carmilla sank down, grabbing Laura by the scruff of her coat and shaking her slightly. 

Laura's chocolate eyes lazily popped open. They were as soft as the snow but turned to burning spite as the person hovering over her became clear from her fuzzy eyes. 

"Laura, you're hurt!" Carmilla pressed a hand firmly on the back of Laura's blood soaked coat to apply pressure to her wound. Laura squirmed herself farther away from the vampire's hands. "No shit, Sherlock." She hissed, eyes narrowing in outrage and pain. "How could you?"

Carmilla furrowed her eyebrows, Laura's harsh tone stinging her. "What?"

"How could you go off like this was some sport, seeing how many people you could hunt down and murder for fun." Laura curled her lip, glowering up at Carmilla. "And lie about where you were. To me. I thought you changed. But here you are; a fucking monster. You've hurt everyone I care about. And for what? For fun?" Laura spat, mocking the last part as her body was racked with violent shaking and sobbing.

Carmilla was flummoxed, her eyes glazed in utter shock. "You think I did this? You think after everything we've been through, I'd go off and have a round with all the lack wits around here?" Carmilla shook her head in disgust. "Oh here we are again, back with this fucking monster bullshit. Once a killer, always a killer in your books, huh? Well, let me tell you something, sweetheart. It. Wasn't. Me. And not everything in your life has to follow some picture perfect story set up that you think the world has to offer you. Not every story has a happy ending." Carmilla's face twisted into an irritated scowl. 

"I didn't murder anyone. I never would have. I...I was at my mother's old apartment. It was a place where I could go and just…breakdown. After losing Mother and Will...it offered me so much comfort. Mattie, my sister, would come down every evening to spend time with me. We'd play games of Senet and bake like we used to. I couldn't risk her finding out that I turned you and added another member to our cult. I couldn't have her destroy you like everyone else. It was better to just keep the whole thing quiet." Carmilla sighed; yet even after every hurtful accusation Laura made, she still moved to help her. 

Laura lay silent in a seething rage for a beat before growling, "By lying? Nothing that you said even makes sense since all of the evidence points directly to you. The way they were killed. Your disappearances. The paw prints at the crime scenes. The growling. Your skin samples they found on Olivia. All of it. You're sick, Carmilla." She was in full tears now, make up slopping down her cheeks. 

Carmilla shook her head in passionate disbelief. "It wasn't me." She hissed, trying so hard to tend to the dying Laura. She stretched a pale hand out to latch onto Laura's coat when the brunette snapped her head around. 

"Stay away from me!" She snapped and Carmilla watched in horror as the small girl beneath the pads of her outstretched fingers slowly morphed into an abnormally, scarily large, sandy colored bobcat. 

"It was you." Carmilla breathed, eyes locked on the slits of hatred the bobcat bore into hers. "And you had no idea."


	12. Number 13

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which shit gets really real

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys! This chapter took me a little longer to write but I really hope you enjoy it. I've got some more ideas for further chapters...think I should continue? Like always, I freaking love your feedback!! You guys are the best C: <3
> 
> Tumblr: glitterypuppyswiftcakes

A low growl emitted from the furry throat of one, Laura Hollis, in her unfamiliar bobcat form. The pain in her shoulder felt like a small prick in her massive cat size. She was in no control of herself and hell, she didn’t even know she was a fucking giant cat right now. All the bobcat knew was that somehow, this small, dark haired girl had pissed her off and now she was going to show her that she wasn’t afraid. 

Propelling herself through the thick layers of snow, Laura pounced toward Carmilla, massive paws aimed at her face and claws unsheathed pointing to her throat. Her teeth were bared; thousands of small daggers anticipating the impact of the vampire’s pale flesh. 

Although the large cat was quick, Carmilla was faster, nearly missing Laura’s razor sharp claws. None of this made any sense to Carmilla. Laura was supposed to grow into her animal form over a long period of time…it wasn’t supposed to grow into her. No wonder Laura had no recollection of anything that had happened. Everything was too rushed. 

Carmilla hadn’t been this scared since the time she witnessed firsthand all of her mother’s brutal attacks toward her as a young vampire. She was at a loss of what to do. Nothing had prepared her for this situation; to stop a huge bobcat from destroying and picking off the students of the entire university without killing the only person she cared about.  
The bobcat quickly pivoted, the snow flying out from under her paws as she launched herself again at Carmilla. She dropped to the ground and rolled away from sudden doom. Turning, hands up to show she wasn’t a threat, Carmilla slowly started to back away from the prowling beast. “Uh…nice Cupcake…” 

No part of the giant dusty cat registered Carmilla’s words as a deep rumbling of agitation came from her velvety throat. “Shhh, L-Laura, it’s me…Carmilla?” Laura’s ears only flattened to her skull, her eyes narrowing to small slits. “You know…your horrible roommate? Who never does any of her damn chores? Who loves you to pieces even after all of this?” 

The air cracked between the flaring, wet nose of the bobcat and Carmilla, snowflakes fluttering down in the silence. Carmilla swore she saw a flicker of Laura’s eyes in those of the wild cat in front of her. She reached out a pale, shaky hand, intent on softly stroking the cat’s fur to comfort her. Hostility reigned supreme in the muddy pools of Laura’s eyes as she snapped at Carmilla. 

Carmilla could feel hot breath at her nose but wouldn’t let the beast who had taken control of Laura win. She dove forward away from the snapping jaws and scrambled to stand up. Slipping in the wet snow, Carmilla plummeted once more to the ground, ice clawing at her face. In the next second, a deafening roar sounded behind her and hot pain flashed in slashes down her back. Carmilla choked through the powder and glanced back to see her ripped and bloodied backside and Laura rounding on her once again. Whimpering, Carmilla tried to claw her way through the snow but her leg was caught in the jaws of the great beast behind her. 

She was being roughly dragged through the snowbanks surrounding them when a daring thought struck her mind like the blow from Laura’s claws. Fighting every tremor of pain that rippled through her body, Carmilla squeezed her eyes shut, blocking out her surroundings. Lost in a world of her own, Carmilla felt herself completely stiffen and then shift as her body composition changed and her pale skin became carpeted with thick jet black fur. The only things that suggested the now giant furry panther had once been Carmilla were her glistening eyes and the gashes etched on her back.

 

Laura immediately stopped, backing up a bit with her sharpened fangs bared in a snarl. Carmilla only took a few steps forward, her colossal paws pressing deep paw prints in the snow to match Laura’s. Casualty and pain glinted in her eyes as she approached the fearful bobcat. She had absolutely zero intentions on hurting Laura, even in the slightest bit. Laura’s character on the other paw, was lost in translation and out of pure adrenaline, she pushed herself from the snow like a spring loaded toy, all hell breaking loose as she bowled over the much larger cat.

Laura’s hind paws battered Carmilla’s soft belly, drawing blood with each stroke. Carmilla nipped slightly behind the bobcat’s ear doing nothing more than to agitate the sandy cat further. Laura’s jaws locked onto Carmilla’s charcoal throat, not budging an inch when the panther wrapped her paws around her, claws digging softly into her back. Carmilla was in trouble now; if she didn’t get Laura off of her soon, she was surely going to become the next victim and Silas would think it was safe minus the threat they thought was Carmilla.

Carmilla completely unsheathed her claws and with her hind legs, she managed to fling the weaker cat from on top of her to the icy pits of the deep frosty snow. The wounds in Carmilla’s belly pulsed with agony, and she felt warm, sticky blood pooling beneath her paws. The two large felines now stood snout to snout, lips curling and tails lashing. Laura’s eyes were chips of ice unlike the warmth the glinted in Carmilla’s.

Carmilla willed for strength to return to her trembling legs as she rounded Laura. A fresh wave of blood oozed from her belly as the edges of the wound shifted. Laura was quick to snap at Carmilla once more, leaving a fresh hot wound to her shoulder. Excruciating pain lanced through Carmilla’s entire body. She forced herself not to flinch but leaped forward, sending Laura tumbling back against the snow drifts. Briefly the dusty cat was stunned and Carmilla managed to nip her foreleg. Pain like fire seared through her again with another blow from the bobcat’s claws, and in the shock of it, Carmilla lost her grip on Laura.

The tawny feline reared back, her paws raised to strike death itself. Carmilla scrabbled to get away as flame washed over her eyes. The panther barely drew back in time. How am I supposed to stop her when I don’t want to hurt her? Desperate, the mountainous obsidian cat latched onto the bobcat roughly, and the two cats rolled over and over through the snow, a shrieking whirl of teeth and claws. When they broke apart, Carmilla only saw her own blood splattering the snow and knew that they had to stop before one of them seriously got hurt.

Through the snarls and growls spilling from Laura’s gritted teeth, Carmilla’s fuzzy ears pricked to the sound of distant voices and chunky boots stomping through the snow. Laura must have heard them too, for her own ears flicked forward and her jaw parted slightly, scents washing over her tongue. 

Carmilla swiveled her head in pain to see a group of students holding flaming torches and glistening pitchforks, chanting, “For Silas!” They were coming to strike down the murdering beast. 

She watched as the bobcat, who had taken full control of Laura, shouldered past her to run into the thicket beside them. Carmilla staggered after her but quivering pain bathed her entire body and she crumpled in defeat. Every hot wound throbbed and spilled blood onto the pasty ground. 

The group of angry and bundled up students was drawing nearer to her and she struggled to get back onto her feet. Before she could so much as lift a paw, they had her completely surrounded, bows and pitch forks directed to every inch of her body and torches threatening to singe off her fur. Fuck.

 

Rumbling through the forest, Laura weaved in between the snow-capped trees. Her belly grumbled in protest and she abruptly stopped, lifting her snout to sniff out her next prey. A whiff of fishy essence struck her scent glands and then she was off, fire and pitchforks in the deep recesses of her mind.

Whiskers twitching, she bounded skillfully through the icy forest, her nose guiding her more than her paws. Laura’s fur was a fresh silky smooth tan dappled with splotches of cinnamon and rung with dark bars crossing her forelegs. The raven feathered tufts on the tips of her ebony ears pricked in frustration from the echoes of the growls behind her.   
Scraping herself through the last bit of brambles, the Zeta Omega Mu house came into view. For the bobcat that had taken over Laura, it was just another strange structure in the mystical civilizations of the modern world. She had been her many times before, rooting through the garbage cans out back or mauling one of the easy targets that were usually just walking home. Laura missed no opportunity for fresh meat. 

She blundered through the snow, heading swiftly for the two glorious shiny objects that she knew held delectable treasures within. Bounding up to one glistening bin, she reared up on her back legs, hoisting her front paws to the top. Laura knocked it over in one agile swipe, just like she had many times before. Snuffling in the snow, she nudged her nose to separate the lid from the actual garbage can. As soon as it had popped off, the contents of the glossy black bag spilled out. Parting through the many useless items such as crumpled assignment papers, used condoms, discarded snack wrappers and a bunch of other trash, Laura’s snout finally met what it had been seeking.

A glob of rotting salted herring was quickly devoured and Laura’s stomach rumbled a ‘Thank you but I’m still fucking hungry.’ Tongue swiping over her messy jowls, Laura stood silently, hell-bent on finding another snack. When her impressive hearing picked up a familiar voice, everything paused inside her mind. For just a second Laura felt herself slip into control in the mentality of the horrendous creature. What the hell? Warm blood rushed through her head along with millions of thoughts. And just like a snap of the fingers, she was gone, replaced with the dominant feline. And this kitty had no time for games. 

 

Lola Perry crossed the frosty campus, bundled to her chin in her thick rainbow scarf. Snug in one arm was a collection of textbooks in various subjects, her other sporting an infamous bucket, a poufy golden sponge and a bottle of Windex. She was on her way to her daily tutoring session with Kirsch over at the Zeta Omega Mu building. Perry always brought over her cleaning supplies because every time she stepped foot into their corridor, her eyes could not believe the level of filth the guys were capable of producing. 

Ever since the beginning of the semester, Kirsch had been struggling through his classes earning low D’s and even as far down as nabbing a big fat F. When Perry began to notice all of Kirsch’s disappointed puppy frowns in their German course, she had offered to tutor him. It started out with simple lessons in the foreign language where Kirsch would always greet her with a “Gluten Tag,” which always made Perry chuckle. With every lesson, she began to notice all of his other classes he was failing and the occasional moldy spot on the carpet or cobwebs laced on the ceiling. Perry would give him an explanatory lecture and then some practice questions while she went off to busy herself with polishing the grimy interior. It astounded her the amount of knowledge she could shove into his pea sized brain and for him to actually understand it. Things were beginning to flow better for him although it was a running gag between the two as he always welcomed her with gluten tag. 

Now as she approached the house expecting an energetic Kirsch to burst out just like he had at exactly 5:30 every other day, she thought she sensed something a little…odd. Her suspicions were confirmed when her eyes stuck to the gaping hole which used to house the Zeta’s only door. “Kirsch?” She called out, stepping onto the stoop and peering into the abandoned pad. “Why can’t everyone just…be normal?”

In the midst of her grumbling, Perry stiffened upon hearing the loud crunches approaching through the snow. “H-hello?” A wild breeze met her stammer, brushing through her curly russet hair. She sat the stack of heavy textbooks down, her grip on the bucket turning her knuckles the same color as the snow. “Kirsch, if this is some stupid Zeta prank…” She could hear the heavy footsteps drawing nearer. “Uh…gluten tag?” 

A ferocious roar echoed through the clearing as Laura sprang out from behind the building toward the cowering ginger. Perry screeched, throwing her bucket and then the sponge at the stalking predator. Laura growled, the bucket clubbing her straight in the muzzle. She shook it off along with the projectile of the sponge and advanced slowly, head down, intent on making this soft, pink creature her next meal.

Perry, scared shitless, wrangled the bottle of Windex and pumped her fingers on the nozzle rapidly. A shower of cleanser chemicals rained upon the bobcat, causing her to stumble and Perry to scream more as the gargantuan creature, dazed and confused, wobbled like a drunken frat. 

 

The group of students began to close in on the injured panther, keeping up their chant. “For Silas! For Silas!” Through her blurry eyes, Carmilla could just make out the head of their little group, Theo. He looked severely battered and large loops of lavender rung around his throat like a collar. He was sporting a malicious grin and a large bow complimented with the sharpest arrow Carmilla had ever seen.

“Well, well, well, Kitty…” Carmilla stiffened upon his words, her thoughts tracing back to when Will used to call her that. “Seems to me that your little killing spree ends here.” Carmilla hated the way he clucked his tongue through his thick accent like he was Mr. Bigshot. She was at a loss. In one paw, she could sacrifice herself for the sake of Laura being able to continue to live without threat. Or she could shake the idiots from her trail and stop Laura herself. She shook her enormous black head to clear away every thought but one. In one last feeble attempt to knock some sense into these lack wits, she wriggled upward, growling a rough “It wasn’t me,” that translated to the huddled group of students to a threatening snarl. Only then did she remember she was in her cat form. It didn’t last either, as one of the cowering students pulled back on their bow and launched an arrow straight through Carmilla’s hind leg, causing her to shrink back into a pale, bloodied vampire. 

Carmilla didn’t know how much more damage she could take. The leg Laura chewed on in an attempt to drag Carmilla away was now bent at a sickening angle. There was blood everywhere, mostly gushing from the fresh arrow wound in her calf.

The Silas students’ chants slowly diminished as their murderous eyes widened in surprise. “Hey isn’t that the vampire chic from the whole sacrificing debacle?” A blonde Summer Society member asked, lowering her pitchfork. “Yeah...Mircalla was it?” Carmilla’s eyes glazed with annoyance and suffering. “Carmilla.” She corrected through gritted teeth. Theo stepped forward looking more pissed off than ever. “Yeah, yeah, the vampire who almost sacrificed half of you to that light demon thing. And the vampire who’s been killing a bunch of students for sport.” 

Hot white pain lapped at the wounds that decorated her body threatening to pull her into the deep recesses of unconsciousness. Carmilla knew she had to act fast before they could discover Laura and her out of control feline empowerment. She could feel the warm trails of sticky blood racing down her leg. “It was me.” Her words were slurring and her eyes were drooping but she choked through the sentence, eyes locked on Theo’s. 

Theo didn’t seem the least bit surprised. Instead, he simply laughed, tossing his torch back in forth in eager hands. “Of course it was. And now, since you hurt our loved ones,” His mouth twitched in the corners but his wicked grin never faltered. Carmilla swore that underneath his dark skin was a cold hearted, emotionless robot. “We’re going to hurt yours.”   
Carmilla’s heart leapt to her throat causing all of her injuries to pulse in torture with each beat. “W-what?” Her voice was barely more than a whisper. She was losing. This wasn’t supposed to happen. They were supposed to kill her right here, right now and Laura would be safe. Nothing made sense to her anymore. 

“We’re draggin’ you down to Hollis’, where she’ll get a front row ticket to your execution. I mean, I know how much she adores movies so we’re gonna bring the action up close and personal.” A beastly sneer from the Zeta curled in even more delight at Carmilla’s reaction. She was coughing up blood, panic closing in on her and trapping horrific thoughts in her brain. Visions of her mother swam freely between her eyes and danced mockingly in her mind. “Don’t bring her into this.” More blood splattered the crimson stained snow. “And where would the fun in that be?” Theo was already moving toward her, fingers outstretched like monstrous claws. Carmilla tried to fight it; fight the numbing pain that shot through her body as they dragged her in the direction of her dorm, fight the horrific images burned into her mind of her mother laughing at yet another one of her failures. Carmilla knew damn well that Laura wouldn’t be in their room. 

Accepting at how much she had failed everyone, Carmilla let her eyelids fall, her body rocking in the rhythmic pattern of the students’ footsteps. Only when the steps paused did Carmilla pry her eyes open. The blonde girl from earlier was screaming, her hands on her face resembling a stunned Kevin McCallister. Carmilla’s eyes rolled in the direction of where she was furiously pointing and her mouth dropped in bewilderment. 

The scene laid out in front of her starred Perry and the bobcat who had overtaken her girlfriend. The frazzled ginger was currently spraying the fuck out of Laura with a tiny bottle of cleaner and trying to run away from the staggering beast. “Shoot it down!” Theo’s voice barely registered in Carmilla’s fuzzy brain as she watched Laura swivel and face them. Carmilla didn’t remember much as she was dropped from the arms of the Silas students, the sound of many arrows whizzing through the air and the shrieks and whimpers that followed. 

 

It was 5:30 AM. 

Laura yawned, pulling on a light jacket and moving toward the window to draw the curtains back. It was a crisp early dawn and the stars were still faintly visible in the peachy indigo sky. Happily sighing, she padded quietly to the sleeping figure that was snuggled under a mountain of blankets. “Mornin’ sleepyhead,” She whispered, delivering a soft kiss to the rosy cheek of one Carmilla Karnstein. Carmilla only grumbled, dragging her blanket over her thick dark head. Laura sat down and shook Carmilla’s wrapped frame lightly. “Carm, come on. You promised me you’d come.”

Carmilla’s head popped up and she turned to stare at Laura. “Did I?” Underneath the early morning annoyance was a trace of light happiness she only felt around the small brunette. “You did,” Laura smiled warmly and ruffled Carmilla’s hair, standing to hop from foot to foot. Carmilla patted her hair down and grumpily stuck a leg out from under the comforter. “Alright, Cupcake,” She sighed but the huge grin that danced on Laura’s face was worth the morning struggle. 

 

When Carmilla had finished lacing her second shoe, she huffed in exasperation. She absolutely hated any type of exercise and doing it out in the cold made it ten times worse. But she had promised Laura that she would go with her. And the way Laura’s eyes had lit up like a Christmas tree made Carmilla’s belly flutter with warmth. With all of the warmth radiating off of Laura to her, she was sure it wouldn’t be too bad out in the snowy landscape. 

Oh, the things she did for love. 

 

Laura had wanted to start off at the quickest possible speed she could obtain but Carmilla physically had to hold her back, smiling as she informed her to start slow. The two vampires took great pleasure in running down the roads that wound around the campus. Carmilla had forgotten how much she loved the wind tickling her face and the solidity she felt with every beat of her undying heart. She remembered the days of her vampire youth when she would race Mattie from one end of the Palace of Versailles to the other. 

Every time Laura’s foot struck the ground, she felt power electrifying her soul. Being a star player on the varsity soccer team in high school had shaped her into a powerful runner. With the newly acquired vampire speed added on, she felt like a souped-up version of Usain Bolt. Laura had been ready to burst at the chance to push herself as fast as she could with the foreign beneficial strength. 

So Carmilla let her go.

From jogging to sprinting, Laura felt her body building momentum as she pushed forward, and forward and forward. It was euphoric, really. All of the stress from worrying about upcoming essays and marks and the mysterious murderer all drained from her mind, the only sound registering was the steady rhythm of her feet as they thrummed over the asphalt. The world around her was a blur but that was okay; nothing had to make sense in this moment. It was just Laura, the icy wind and the soft thud, thud, thud of her dirty tennis shoes on the smooth road. 

Carmilla wasn’t too far behind the aspiring runner as she sensed a small trickle of sweat wind down the base of her neck, struggling to keep up. Maybe it was the cold or the lack of breakfast that morning but Carmilla didn’t feel up to her usual standards. And she was incredibly tired from a late night Netflix binge watch that Laura insisted would be ‘super-duper fun!’ The only fun Carmilla had had was the snarky commentary she provided that always earned her a light smack from a giggling Laura.

Checking to see that the vampire was still on her tail, Laura turned 180 degrees, now skillfully running backwards. Sharp air filtered through her lungs and sweat clung to her shirt underneath her jacket but she didn’t mind. It was a chance for everything horrible in her life to slip away…and for everything wonderful in her life to catch up. 

“Come on, slowpoke!” 

Carmilla only grunted, her feet pounding awkwardly on the sloping street, snow from the banks causing her to slide a little. All this extra work made her wish she had just stayed burrowed in her bed. When Carmilla’s foot caught on a particularly slippery streak of ice, she nearly fell, catching herself just in time. Heart pounding and drenched with sweat, she stopped, grumbling about how stupid this whole outing had been. 

Laura snorted at the near impact of Carmilla to ice and sprinted back to help the seething vampire steady herself. “This was stupid,” Carmilla huffed, turning so that Laura couldn’t see the fear that glinted in her eyes from almost falling. Laura studied her carefully, placing a warm hand on her shoulder. “You know it’s okay if you fall a few times. It’s better to just let it happen so you can learn from your mistakes,” A sly smile stretched across Laura’s lips as she elbowed Carmilla. “And I know you’re already good at falling since you fell for me.”

Carmilla couldn’t shake the stupid grin she knew was creeping across her face. “You are such a dork.”

Laura shrugged happily and took the vacant spot beside Carmilla as they began to slowly jog again. 

“Now, to get a nice fast pace, you’re going to want to steady yourself and-"

“Cupcake, I don’t think I need a lesson in running. Even a dimwit can run if he sets his mind to it.”

A soft breeze enveloped the two girls as Laura began to increase her speed. “Oh, really? Because I remember not too long ago when little Miss ‘I don’t need running lessons’ was trailing behind me like a snail!” 

Carmilla stayed silent for a beat, the only indication she had heard Laura was the way her eyebrows had knit in frustration. “Fine,” she groused when Laura had put a few feet of road in between them. Laura happily obliged and slowed to let Carmilla catch up.

“First,” She instructed, excitement wrapped in her words. “Unclench your fists, you’ve got to relieve all of that tension. Just…shake it off.” Laura did a little shimmy in an adorable, dorky rendition of the popular Taylor Swift song. A car driving past honked and Carmilla glared at it, offering her middle finger and a sarcastic smile. 

Unclenching her fists and relaxing, Carmilla realized that Laura was right. It offered her the opportunity to propel herself forward with every swing of her arms. Laura threw her a proud smile as Carmilla slowly relaxed into the mirrored rhythm of her roommate. “Second, you look like Augustus Gloop with your cheeks all puffed out and red.” A flash of indignation popped onto Carmilla’s face at the thought of being compared to oversized chocolate idiot she was never fond of. “Just breathe in through your nose and out through your mouth…in through your nose and out through your mouth…” 

When her breathing had become regulated and she no longer had to huff through every sentence, Carmilla felt the weight of the world lift from her tired shoulders. Running was easy. It was also becoming very enjoyable. Every time her shoe met the ground, her smile would stretch farther across her face. “How did you become such an expert at exercise when half of your diet consists of pure sugars and fats and you spend almost every moment you have free glued to your Netflix?” 

“I played soccer in high school…number 13.” Laura threw a wink to Carmilla seeing the way her eyebrows peaked in inquisitiveness. Ignoring the bombardment of questions spilling from Carmilla’s lips, Laura caught sight of the glittering STOP sign at the end of the road. “Questions can wait until we get back…” She jerked her head toward the sign, a mischievous smirk forming over her lips. “Race you.”

As soon as the words were uttered, Carmilla took off like an Olympic gold medalist runner, regulating her breathing and relaxing just as Laura had taught her. Every muscle in her body screamed but she pushed herself to the limit, unsurprised if she melted the snow to leave a trail of scorch marks. When her palm collided with the cool metal a few seconds before Laura’s and the pants came in heavy surges, only then did she catch her breath. It was ripped right from her throat when she saw Laura breathing heavily beside her. Even with her wind strewn hair and drenched jacket, Laura was more capable of taking her breath away than their heated run. “Who’s the slowpoke now?” Carmilla grinned, bringing Laura in for a very warm, much needed kiss.

 

It was 5:35 PM.

Carmilla could only watch in horror from where she had been dropped in the thin layer of snow. The Silas students that had been dragging her to certain doom were now galloping toward the arrow stricken Laura, bows still raised and drawn back. She could hear Theo’s hysterical laughing and the scuttle of boots to snow. The sound echoed in her mind, fiery hatred burning in her stomach. She couldn’t let him win. She needed to save Laura. 

Digging in the back of her brain, a memory striking the surface, Carmilla mustered up every ounce of her strength. Through the sharp pain, she pushed herself to an awkward standing position, her leg still twisted at an odd angle. She began clambering through the snow at a slow pace.

Come on slowpoke!

Carmilla winced, yelping in pain as she tried adjusting her speed. Every time her injured foot struck the ground, collapsing in defeat seemed like a better option. But that’s not the way Carmilla Karnstein worked. She wasn’t concerned with her wellbeing at the moment. Only Laura mattered. Through the rivers of blood pouring from her legs and belly, she increased her acceleration, biting back sprigs of tears. 

Unclench your fists, you’ve got to relieve all of that tension. Just…shake it off.

Carmilla relaxed her bloodied fists, coming to the conclusion that she couldn’t fully relax. Everything was too tight and reeked with pain.   
Just breathe in through your nose and out through your mouth…in through your nose and out through your mouth…

Carmilla had almost completely forgotten the most important step process. She focused all of her breathing to her nose and then puffed it back out from her mouth. With every stride, she gained a tiny amount of speed. And before she knew it she was zipping toward Laura, all pain forgotten. Head pounding, she shoved past the clump of students and collapsed against Laura’s broken body.

“Laura?” She gently shook the brunette’s bloodied shoulders. She stirred slightly, her caramel eyes barely opening. “C-Carm?” 

Carmilla felt like she was going to puke. The sight of the person she loved to the moon and back with arrows lacerated through her entire body made her completely break down. Her tears fell as fast as the blood that spilled from her open wounds. “Y-you’re gonna be okay, Laura, okay?” 

The only indication that Laura had heard her was the slight drop of her head. “No, no. Laura, stay with me…” Her tears dripped onto Laura’s pale, ice cold skin. Carmilla gently cupped her cheeks and tried fighting back the heavier tears that threatened to spill over. 

“Remember the-the chocolate ice cream in the bed? Our snowmen?” Carmilla was dribbling and trying so hard to pull Laura back to her with their shared memories. “When I tried to give you that damn blood and you refused it like a bratty child? That stupid run you forced me to go on? Our cookie eating contests? L-late night Doctor Who marathons?” Laura’s eyes fluttered and Carmilla completely let go of everything she was trying to hold back. 

It was all her fault. 

Carmilla wailed, holding Laura’s head close to her. She only paused, mouth quivering, to listen for any evidence that Laura was still breathing. Only the faint draw of air that circulated through her gave her the tiny life she desperately clung to. Carmilla racked her brain for anything that could save Laura…would save Laura. 

Only when Carmilla felt the last trickle of cold breath squeeze out of the body she was clinging to did she return to reality. “Tuna breath,” Laura coughed and then her eyes lolled from their locked position on Carmilla, eyelids returning her to the darkness. 

Carmilla felt like she had been the one to receive the arrows. It was a brutal blow as she crumpled to the ground, sobbing harder than she ever had before, arms wrapped tightly around her number 13.


	13. Checkmate

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm so sorry this chapter was late, I've been so busy with school and dentist appointments. UGH. But here is the next chapter c: EXPECT A BETTER CHAPTER NEXT CHAPTER. Thank you for all of the love and support guys! I love reading all of your comments, they encourage me further! So...enjoy! 
> 
> tumblr: glitterypuppyswiftcakes

The number 13 is considered an unlucky number in some countries.

The ancient Sumerians developed a numeral system based on the use of 12 that is still used in measuring time today. Following closely on the heels of this “perfect” number was the lacking and unusual 13. Many historic events including The Last Supper and Knights Templar included this number in the form of betrayal and the unlucky date of Friday the 13. This strange phenomenon became recognized as triskaidekaphobia. 

 

Carmilla had never really believed in any of that stupid crap anyway. Sure she occasionally cursed the sky when she happened to find a little bad luck but none of that was of the numerical sort. She never thought there was anything unlucky about herself. Hell, Carmilla was a fucking giant black cat and she still thought she could hide from the prowling evil lurking in the shadows of luck.

Carmilla hadn’t always been this lucky though. 

Back in her time when her mother ruled over her and she was forced to play along, she had lost so much. Numerous affairs had been swept down the drain after each picking from her mother. Not to mention how yet another oblivious bad luck sign in the form of Fluffy had weaved its way into their path. The only person Carmilla thought had cared about her all those centuries ago had spun her around and shattered a mirror of bad luck to reflect upon the young vampire. 

At first, Carmilla had thought she was lucky to be under the protection of the gentle woman. But as soon as she had gotten past her horrible leathery skin and curly locks much like her own, she realized that luck was about as fake as Maman. Sure you could ring yourself with horseshoes and sport an awkward rabbit foot around your throat, but what good would that do besides making you look like a complete idiot? 

How she wished she had stepped on a crack the moment she realized her mother’s true intentions.

Only when Theo had stepped forward did Carmilla remember she was still surrounded by a group of students, each with their own expression levels of shock. “Well, that didn’t go quite as planned, but still oh so satisfying…You have to admit you had it coming though. Villains never get their happy endings.”

Carmilla gritted her teeth and gently placed Laura in the trampled and bloodied snow. “Which is why you’re not getting yours.” She snarled and leapt from her kneeling position only to crumble into a heap of suffering. She whimpered slightly, her leg twisting even more. 

Theo smirked, raising his bow and angling it directly at Carmilla’s face. “Of course I will. You’ve been disobedient, dear. And now it’s just another matter of ridding the world of another wretched black cat.”

Carmilla immediately stiffened, her eyes becoming sharp chips of ice. “What the hell did you just say?”

“Now, now, darling,” There was a slight twitch in Theo’s lips that Carmilla recognized ever so clearly. “This has all been your fault, hasn’t it?” He dropped his weapon slightly but only to whisk a light bloodied hand over Carmilla’s face. She bristled and opened her mouth to fight back the only way she could, with words. “This isn’t my fault,” her nose scrunched up in a fit of rage. “If we’re blaming people, I say this whole thing was your fault. You were the one who ripped every opportunity away from me, who killed everything I’ve ever loved. You did it like it was your god damn job and the only thing you ever cared about was yourself-“ 

In that moment, as soon as the words had left her mouth, Carmilla was met with another stroke of Theo’s hand, only it wasn’t gentle. The slap was powerful enough to strike every chord in her memory, blossoming all of the hate she had buried. If her eyes were as cold as Antarctica, they were now melted and blazing with outrage.

“How dare you try to pin this on me?” Theo hissed, the tip of the arrow was only inches from Carmilla’s blood stained face. Deep frustrated grooves cut into his forehead and his eyes narrowed to tiny, angry slits.

“You knew what the job was. Your instructions were simply to lure girls not,” He gazed down in disgust at the heap of broken Laura. “Chase after them like some idiotic game of cat and mouse. I didn’t tell you to go throwing your heart around like it was nothing. This was your fault, Carmilla. All you had to do was follow a set of rules even an idiot could follow. And look what happened. You wasted yet another span of time on this annoying little gnat who didn’t even love you. You think this is some silly little game where there’s romance and happiness and life is so simple! But this is not such a game. Life is a chessboard, Carmilla. One wrong move and the entirety of it all comes crashing down. You are merely a pawn while I am the queen. You didn’t take heed to the warning signs, you ignorant fool. Did you really think a vampire of your age could turn a human? Petty girl, it was I. I had turned her, I had caused the murderous beast within her to come out, I had trained it to replace everything in its mind with nothing but the objective to kill. For maybe then, you would have learned your lesson for once.”

“You?”

Carmilla felt the heat behind her ribcage grow so hot that it turned sickly icy as the fire ignited within her. Blinded by molten tears, she launched herself, through every inch of pain, and tackled the wickedly grinning boy to the ground. She let herself, the girl with the broken memories and plans for future happiness, completely evaporate as she poured her rage into every punch that struck Theo’s face. 

One punch for the stupid ‘I told you so’ face frozen on his ugly face. Another for all of the hate built up inside of her. A third for Laura dying. Punch after punch and reason after reason Carmilla crashed her fist against the possessed Zeta’s face. The entire time, his barbarous, twisted smirk never fell. “Foolish girl, you think you’re strong enough to kill a centuries old, powerful vampire like me? Please. You’re a child, and you’ll end up dying in the process.”

Carmilla ignored his voice and only thought of Laura’s softer voice, echoing through her ears and giving her enough reasons to keep throwing useless punches. Soon, she could feel her energy starting to slip, although she still powered through with heated fury. As she shot her fist forward once more, it was caught in Theo’s hand, his eyes glittering like black beetles and his smile twisted like the Grinch’s. “It’s time to finish this game.” The Zeta kicked Carmilla off of him with little effort.

Her heart fluttered as she soared through the air, landing on her back and twisting to see Theo hovering over her, bow back in his hands. “I should have never turned you back then, knowing now that you’re just a useless, objectionable imbecilic girl not willing to handle her own responsibilities.” Carmilla felt her heart twist in pain and seething hate for the woman inside of the mind of Theo. She spat a bloody wad of spit up in his face, which only reddened his face more. He swiftly pulled back the arrow, locking eyes with Carmilla. 

Carmilla’s eyes, however, trailed to who was now sneaking up behind the possessed student. “The only useless, objectionable and imbecilic person is standing right in front of me. You’re a sick, sadistic bitch and a huge ass coward. You just can’t admit that you’re going to be alone for the rest of your life so you take out all your little frustrations on whoever is pissing you off at the moment. And you know what? I’m fucking glad that I’m me so that when I look in the mirror, I don’t see a reflection of what you’ve created. And HOLY crap are you about to get what’s coming to you.”

Theo’s head cocked to the side, eyes barely visible and jaw set. He slowly spun around to meet a glaring Perry. “See you in hell, bitch.” Holy Water spilled from the feeble container and splashed like acid on Theo’s skin. His weapon immediately dropped and he spun to face Carmilla who, behind every ounce of rage and grief, was sporting a small winning smirk. 

Theo reached a bubbling hand forward to take hold of her but she simply brushed him away. Her mother inside of him was weakening. Soon enough he collapsed, Perry spraying him with even more liquid. “You fool,” he growled, barely more than a whisper. “Yeah, yeah,” Carmilla huffed as she watched emotionless as her mother burned away.

Only when nothing remained did she fill the silent void, her voice echoing. “Checkmate.”

 

Perry insisted that Carmilla get her injuries checked out and after refusing multiple times on going to the hospital, Carmilla settled on letting Lafontaine fix her up. The only way she would go though, was if they could take Laura too. Perry was very doubtful but she and Lafontaine had maneuvered her back to their dorm, a hobbling Carmilla at their heels.

As soon as they had laid Laura down on the bed, Carmilla had taken a spot beside her, softly stroking her hair and trying very hard for the two gingers to not see the tears forming in her eyes. She refused any treatment, willing that Laura be looked at first, even though she was leaving trails of blood on the spotless carpet. Perry tried to keep her cool but ended up on her knees, scrubbing away to distract herself from the situation at hand. 

Lafontaine did their best to stitch up all of the open arrow wounds dotting Laura’s fragile body, but knew deep in their mind that the body below them was lifeless. They only did it because they knew Carmilla would end up the same way if they didn’t get to treat her in time. 

Lafontaine cleared their throat and Carmilla looked up, eyes hopeful. They only moved silently to the vampire and began to awkwardly work through each cut, stitching up the worst of the wounds spattered on her. Carmilla’s foot was swollen purple and tender to the touch. Lafontaine had scooped a bag of ice together and gingerly wrapped it with an ace bandage. “Just get some rest, Carmilla.”

But Carmilla didn’t rest. She stayed up the rest of the night, curled protectively around Laura. She smelled faintly of chocolate and snow but mostly fresh blood. If she positioned herself just right, Carmilla could hear the light thumps of Laura’s heart. Or maybe that was Perry padding around the darkened kitchen area, baking…cake? Yeah, that was Perry. 

Through the darkness that surrounded them, Carmilla could still pick out every detail on Laura’s unmoving body. She could see the rosy tint that lived upon her cheeks and shone brightest when Carmilla would take her hand or kiss her gently. Laura’s face was a landscape itself, her cheekbones were the highest mountains, sliding down into the deep valleys that cut across her cheeks. In small comparison was her tiny button nose that Carmilla knew loved to scrunch up with frustration and anger, but also soft smiles. And then there were her eyes, which were now shielded by her darkened eyelids, over which hung her quirked eyebrows. Cascading around the entirety of her face was the softest honey colored hair, which Carmilla was now stroking lightly, tears now spilling from her eyes.

 

Carmilla was roughly shaken awake when the first rays of dawn shown through the open-curtained window. “Where is it?” A voice was shouting in her ear. “What the hell?” Carmilla rubbed her eyes and when they finally focused, she saw a wide eyed Lafontaine in front of her. “The big Sumerian book? Where is it?” 

Carmilla’s eyebrows laced in deep confusion. “Uh, it’s in our washroom…but why do you need it?” Lafontaine had no time to answer as they rushed out the door probably intent on breaking into her dorm and taking their bathmat. It was pretty cushy. Carmilla grumbled something about having been woken up so early and flipped to face the wall, shutting out the world once more and settling on playing a movie in her mind of the memories she had shared with Laura. 

 

The next time Carmilla had woken up was on half of her own account, the other being the heavenly smell filtering throughout the small dorm. She sat up, careful not to disturb Laura and tried heaving herself off of the bed. Immediate pain flared through her ankle and she winced, flopping back down on the bed in a sitting position. Her slight whimper caught the attention of Perry who was wearing a flour covered apron and a pair of oven mitts.

“Oh, good morning, dear.” She grabbed a plate from the counter and stepped over the medical equipment still strewn over the floor, making her way to Carmilla. She handed Carmilla the dish, which atop rested thick, fluffy Belgium waffles drizzled in blood instead of maple syrup. “Thanks,” Carmilla squeaked and ate them rather slowly, not feeling all that hungry. Perry rested a caring hand on her shoulder and left the silence to speak for itself. 

Two minutes into small mouthfuls of breakfast and silence, the door flew open and Lafontaine burst in, a thick brown book under their arm. Not bothering to let Carmilla finish her meal, they shoved the book under her nose, a finger pointing at the Sumerian scrawled text.

“Right here. I remembered reading something about this earlier but it never occurred to me as important until now. I spent all morning trying to decipher it and it turns out that the blood of Lophiiformes, the angler fish, is powerful to vampires so maybe it could save Laura?” 

Carmilla froze, her mouth open slightly and thoughts racing in her brain. She nodded slowly, a plan forming in her head. “M-maybe. Um…how bad is she?”   
Lafontaine cast a side glance at Perry and she nodded in response. “…Bad enough that if this plan doesn’t work…” Carmilla’s breath caught in her throat. There was no way in hell she was risking not going as an option. Even if it somehow meant dying in the process, she was willing to do it all for Laura. 

“I’m going.” Her response was clipped as she awkwardly rose, keeping her weight to one side and hobbled past them both. It was now or never. 

She was going down to the pit to get that blood and nothing was going to stop her from saving Laura. 

 

Empty soy milk container in hand, Carmilla limped across the frosty campus, the Blade of Hastur filling her other fist. After saving Laura from the first major attack on Silas by her mother, Carmilla had kept the sword as a souvenir and a token of all won that day. Even if her mother truly had turned Laura, she had still been alive then. Then.

Carmilla shuddered in the cold, moving past the empty expanses of snow and buildings. Even though the blade was forged with the burnt bones of star spawn and meant to shatter all who opposed it, Carmilla worried that she wouldn’t have enough strength to fight the gargantuan looming creature. Maybe her mother was right. Maybe she was just a giant failure. 

Approaching the Lustig and eyeing the gaping pit under it, Carmilla slowly dragged herself forward. Failure or not, she was still going to try for Laura’s sake. She peered over the lip of the pit, seeing a faint buttery light glowing in the distance. Soy milk container now clenched in between her teeth, she hauled herself over the edge gently, slowly maneuvering down the rocky slope and trying not to put too much pressure on her foot. 

When large chunks of earth decided to spring from the edge almost causing her to slip and fall, Carmilla cursed her mother, finding her footing once more. When her foot caught the base of the pit, she staggered, letting her eyes take in the little light that was cast in the eerie hollow. She could just make out the lithe shadow of a huge mass. Sitting the container down on the ground, Carmilla tightened her grip on the sword and slowly tottered toward the light.

Quietly, she rounded the monster, the blade glittering in the soft light. With all the strength she could muster, she drew the sword over her head and plunged it into the flesh of the angler fish. A bellow of no imaginable resonance reverberated off of the walls causing Carmilla to nearly go deaf. In her moment of shock, an enormous tail swept her off her feet and sent her tumbling through the dirt. A jagged set of teeth snapped toward her, a second too late as she skillfully and painfully rolled from their grasp.

With the fish confused, Carmilla drove the sword in its side, earning another hit and tumble. This time she scrambled to her feet before it could reach her. She was panting heavily and not doing so well on her feet. 

Lophiiformes didn’t look so hot either. Blood was oozing from its wounds as it thrashed around, earsplitting screeches pouring from its open fanged mouth.   
Carmilla only stopped for a beat, studying where to aim next. An idea popped in her head, although it would involve an immense amount of pain. But pain meant nothing to her. Only Laura did.

“For Laura!” Carmilla launched herself off of her fractured ankle, pain crackling up through her leg and spreading like wildfire. Carmilla’s teeth threatened to break from how hard she was gritting them, but she ignored the pain and focused on the fish in front of her who was about to become sushi. 

The tip of the blade cut through the angler fish’s eye and Carmilla heaved it down, splitting the fish down to its middle. As soon as she hit the ground, she rolled back, unable to move at the moment with the current condition of her ankle. Lophiiformes let out an even louder and higher screech that made Carmilla genuinely astonished that she was not deaf yet. 

Finally, when she heard no more bellows or subsiding grunts, Carmilla pulled herself up, staggering to the dead fish with the milk container held firmly. She paused at the largest gash and silently allowed the sticky blood the flow into the carton. Once it was full, she took one last glance at the destruction before her and lurched toward the wall of the pit. 

 

As soon as she stepped foot in Lafontaine and Perry’s dorm room, Carmilla stumbled to the bed holding Laura as quickly as possible and collapsed, her ankle thrumming with every beat of her heart. Perry was still busy baking and Lafontaine was hunched over the Sumerian book, a determined look of concentration on their face. “I…I got it…” 

Both gingers looked up; Perry discarding her oven mitts and possibly burning whatever she was baking now and Lafontaine throwing the book down to rush her. 

Carmilla hastily twisted the top off the carton and pushed the container to Laura’s lips with little concentration. Everyone held their breath as the liquid trickled into Laura’s dusty lips. When over a quarter of the container had been downed, Carmilla hobbled back, watching with eyes swimming in a concoction of hope and worry. When several minutes passed and still nothing happened, Perry and Lafontaine backed off, giving Carmilla more room. Perry silently padded to the burning oven and Lafontaine busied themselves by rereading the same sentence over and over. 

It hadn’t worked. Her mother had gotten exactly what she wanted, just like she always had. And she was right…Carmilla was a useless, utter failure. She didn’t even care when the tears came spilling out and the sobs choked the life out of her.


	14. Colors of the WInd

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you guys had an awesome and safe Halloween! I went as Laura! As promised, here is the next chapter! Enjoy, Creampuffs! As always, your comments are much appreciated c: THANK YOU SO MUCH. You guys are the best
> 
> tumblr: glitterypuppyswiftcakes

Carmilla was desperate. 

Why hadn’t the damn angler fish blood worked? Wasn’t it supposed to be some all-powerful substance to strengthen anything? Couldn’t it lift demigods to power and immoral beasts to destruction? By comparison, Laura was tiny, so surely it would’ve worked, right?

Wrong. 

Maybe this was like one of those sickly sweet stories her real mother used to tell her when she was younger where the princess was always cured with a kiss. Maybe Laura just needed a magical kiss; and at this point Carmilla was willing to try anything. Silas was pretty supernatural after all. 

Bending down to brush a soft kiss against Laura’s dry lips as fragile as egg shells, Carmilla squeezed her eyes shut, praying that like the stories, she was about to receive her happy ending. She could taste the mingling flavors of blood and the ever present chocolatey essence the seemed to be captivated in the deep cracks of her colorless lips. 

After several long seconds of expecting something enchanting to happen and praying what she was doing would, Carmilla finally unstuck herself and lifted her head to watch. Her eyes stared unblinking, as large as an owl’s, never once leaving Laura. The small brunette only lay lifeless and still, almost as if she were taking a nap; just like she had many times before, after too many cookies. 

Carmilla’s insides churned. That was stupid. That was so stupid. And now Lafontaine and Perry were staring at her with even more sympathy. She could see it in their eyes that they thought she was an idiot. 

And idiot she was for thinking she could ever keep something that was her only ray of light to her darkness. The heavy weight of her shadows clung to her, all hope lost. Not being able to take a second more of the itchy feeling she had from the gingers’ stares, Carmilla wordlessly padded out of the room following the hall to the exit and stepped out into the crisp air. 

Pale hands snug in the recesses of her leather jacket, Carmilla slowly trampled through the snow. Looking around, it was as if it never happened. A fresh layer of snow lay covering any hurried footsteps imprinted the night before. Frustration threatening to rip her in half, Carmilla bent down, scooped a handful of snow from the ground and began packing it tightly. A clip of Laura carefully making her own snowball, tongue peeking out from the corner of her mouth in concentration, flickered through Carmilla’s mind. A sharp pain struck through her chest like the arrows that had struck Laura’s. Carmilla immediately threw the snowball down like it was burning acid through her hand. 

With its departure and a small crunch, the little snowball began its decent down the small hill to her right. It only ceased to exist as a whole when it crashed into the towering tree looming overhead. Carmilla tried not to dwell too much on the fact that it was the same tree she had beat Laura to in their little race on the snow day. It seemed like ages ago. 

But she did, however, focus on how the snowball had rolled to destruction, bringing her back to one of her earlier studies of physics. 

It was plain simple. 

Newton’s first law stated that an object at rest stays at rest or an object in motion stays in motion with the same speed and in the same direction unless acted upon by an unbalanced force. Putting the sciencey phrase into words she actually cared about, she trudged on, ignoring the direction her feet were taking her.

The object or thing in this case was her and Laura’s relationship, set in a forward motion. What had Lafontaine called them? Hollistein? Holestine? Carmilla shook the ignorant thought from her head and again focused on the science. Her mind bounced between two variables that could be considered the unbalanced force. One option was that it was entirely her fault for not being there in time to stop Laura or her mother. The second option was obviously her mother, who had turned Laura, caused most of this whole mess and cursed Carmilla with loneliness. 

Or maybe it was two forces.

But maybe not the two she was thinking of. 

On one hand, Carmilla balanced the mass of herself as contributing to half of the force that had euthanized Laura, but on the other, the brunette rested solely on her own. It probably didn’t count as the solidity of her whole, but Laura was half responsible, even if she didn’t realize what she had done in her feline form. 

And when she finally broken down the components, it was too late. Laura had been unstoppable to every force except the weight of her mother that drove her to the ground. Three forces. She kicked emptily at the snow, scattering flakes through the negative degree winds.

There was a way to put these forces back together…the Pythagorean Theorem. 

But Carmilla quickly scrapped the idea because who the hell fixes deaths with the fucking Pythagorean Theorem? 

And that was just it. There was no way to come back from the giant mess that she had created. If she just would have stayed home instead of going to Mattie’s, like she’d planned, Laura wouldn’t be gone. She’d still be cozied up beside her, sipping that damn hot chocolate and babbling on about the latest episode of Doctor Who. 

Feeling a heavy pang in her chest and a foreign object under her foot, Carmilla dragged her eyes down to stare at the scattered objects before her.  
She was in the familiar patch of woods, heavily laden with scarlet and housing few abandoned weapons. Carmilla only stared, small sharp breaths clawing at her throat. 

No.

Panic was washing over her until she herself felt like she were drowning in the thick, soupy blood. Before she knew it, Carmilla was on the ground, her bare fists sinking into the snow. The sniffles came fast, leading up to the sobs that racked her body with so much emotion, too much emotion, that she felt that at any second she would be sick. 

Everything she ever loved was gone. Nothing would ever be the same again. Sure the whole debacle with Elle had been horrific and depressing but it was Elle who had turned on her. Now, picturing the peaceful Laura in her uninhabited body, Carmilla knew it was all her fault. They had their fight and Carmilla was stupid enough to not take warning after Laura had turned. If she just had poured all of her strength out before the Zetas and Summers had gotten to her, she could’ve stopped Laura herself. And she’d still be here.

Opening her eyes from their squeezed position to scan the area through hot tears, Carmilla spotted the object she had been thinking of from the moment her knees hit the ground. She wrapped her hands around it tightly, bringing it into focus and taking a sharp breath.

In more than a century, she had never loved anyone quite like Laura. It was her dorky grin that catapulted Carmilla into the rays of the bright sun from the dark depths of her grumpiness. Laura showed her the good in people she would have never expected to find. Hell, she even changed from her murderous past because of the effect the little ball of sugar addicted sunshine had on her. The person she was now was heavily influenced by Laura but truly changed because of herself. Through Laura’s actions, Carmilla had found it in her to become who she really was. She was not Countess Karnstein, the vampire who used to go on killing sprees for sport. She was Carmilla Karnstein, the lost soul who had found her missing piece and was a hero at heart. 

Except now, without the piece that completed her challenging puzzle of life, she was a crumbled mess. Her pieces were everywhere and she knew no other person fit into her quite like Laura. 

Stake in hand and mind set, Carmilla looked up toward the silvery sky and then back out into the blood soaked clearing. “For Laura,” her quivering voice was barely more than a whisper. She squeezed her eyes shut and held her breath, aiming the stake right to her chest. 

Before the weapon could puncture her skin, a shrill noise rumbled in her pocket. It was that stupid fucking Nyan Cat jingle Laura had set on her phone. Carmilla’s heart was beating a mile a minute as she slowly set the stake down and fished her hand in her pocket. When she pulled it out, she saw the contact name: LafonFrankenstein. Laura had come up with it and even if it did sound a little stupid, Carmilla still kept the name.

She swiped her screen to stop the bubbling meows and held the icy phone to her ear. “H-hello?” She hated how shaky her voice was.

“Carmilla…where are you?”

Carmilla glanced around, guilt filling her stomach on what she was about to do. “Just…out.” 

“Well, you might want to get back here.”

As they paused, so did Carmilla’s heart. 

“Laura’s awake.”

 

Before Lafontaine could get out another syllable, Carmilla had already ended the call and was bounding through powdery snow toward the dorms. She swore her heart was one long, strung out beat for how rapid it pulsed, threatening to break through her chest like the stake would have. 

Laura was alive.

It didn’t make sense but Laura was alive. Carmilla could feel wet tears streaking down her face in utter relief. Dashing through the snow, she nearly crashed into the tree where she had been earlier, too intent on getting back to the warmth of the dorms and her cupcake.

Carmilla spent no time hesitating as she burst through the doors, snow flurrying in a tornado-like wind tunnel down the hall. She marched, more snow spraying over the linoleum floor, down to Lafontaine and Perry’s dorm, stopping in her tracks when she was met with their door. A shaky hand hovered over the doorknob. She stood quiet for a moment before twisting the cool metal and charging under the door frame. 

There she was. Even with her dull eyes and ruffled hair, Carmilla could still make out the same quirk of her eyebrows and those rosy, strawberry shortcake cheeks. She wasted no time in practically jumping onto the outstretched Laura, lying lazily on the bed, and pulled her in for a giant, cuddly hug. Carmilla breathed in her sweet, familiar scent and decided that this is what home smelled like. Only, as soon as she went to breathe in another whiff of her soulmate and press a real kiss to her lips, she was pushed forcefully off the bed, landing with a dull thump of the spotless carpet. 

“What the hell?” 

Carmilla looked up, surprise shocking her entire body. Laura was staring down at her with disgust, the words forming on her tongue once again as she looked at Lafontaine for back up. “Who the hell is she? And why the fuck is she trying to kiss me?” 

Those were not the same warm chocolate eyes Carmilla had expected to see.

Laura glanced back and forth between Carmilla and Lafontaine, simultaneously wiping her hands in repulsion on her jeans. “Well?”

Lafontaine dropped their gaze to look awkwardly at the baffled Carmilla. They crouched down so that only the vampire was in earshot. “I tried to tell you earlier but you hung up. She’s lost her memories. I…I don’t know if it’s permanent or what but…” They trailed off not meeting Carmilla’s eyes. 

“Okay, if you’re not going to fucking answer me,” Laura glared at Lafontaine and Carmilla felt her eyes widen at this “new” Laura’s bitchy attitude. “Then I’ll just have to ask her myself.” She turned her focus on Carmilla, her voice doing a poor job of hiding the whininess shadowing it. “Um, excuse me, but who the hell are you?”

“Carmilla?” She offered, getting to her feet. “You know…your girlfriend?” Lafontaine made a hand gesture along the lines of ‘ixnay on the upidstay’. 

Laura looked utterly revolted. “No, no, no, no, no. You…you’re not my girlfriend. I don’t even…,” She glanced up at Lafontaine once again but their eyes were glued to Carmilla. “I’m straight.”

Carmilla wasn’t taking any bullshit, not now. Not with Laura dangling in front of her face like a taunting cat toy. “Cupcake, you’re about as straight as the Whomping Willow.” Laura’s eyes almost crossed in their confusion. “What the fuck are you even talking about?”

Shit.

If Laura didn’t even catch her lame Harry Potter reference, then she really was gone. 

Lafontaine stepped in between the bickering pair before Carmilla could call her out on her sexuality again. “What my friend here is trying to say,” They glared at Carmilla and she snapped her mouth shut. “Is that you guys are girlfriends. You know, friends…that are…girls. And she’s here to...uh…tutor you in…art history.” Lafontaine turned so that only Carmilla could see their subtle wink. Carmilla only rolled her eyes because there was no way in hell or Hogwarts that Laura would believe this terrible lie. “She comes here every Tuesday and Thursday to tutor you. Right, Carmilla?”

Carmilla nodded reluctantly wondering where the fuck Lafontaine was going with this. Laura didn’t seem to have her quick wits anymore and nodded slowly like she had actually remembered this. “Oh, well today’s Monday. You should probably check your calendar before coming next time.” She turned with a swish of her hair and stalked back to the bed, still fuming as she buried herself in one of Lafontaine’s graphic novels. 

Carmilla immediately grabbed the sleeve of Lafontaine’s shirt and pulled them to the opposite side of the room. “What the hell?” 

“I know, weird right? You’d think the angler fish blood wouldn’t have affected her overall character. Now she just seems all whiney and bitchy…you know she sort of reminds me of someone…”

Carmilla narrowed her eyes. “Can it, Copper Top, why’d you say I was her tutor…and art of all subjects?” 

A playful smile tugged at Lafontaine’s lips while the light twinkled in their eyes. “In one piece of art hides so many different meanings. She’s bound to remember eventually, Carmilla. Which is why you’re going to help her.”

“By hiding the fact that she’s my girlfriend and having to physically restrain myself from even the slightest contact?” 

“Atta girl. This way the road to recovery will be less bumpy, ya know?”

Carmilla kept her eyes narrowed skeptically, glancing back and forth between them and the huffing Laura. “And you’re sure this’ll work?”

“By reminding her of her past, you might trigger memories that will eventually unravel the real Laura.”

Carmilla felt her chest tighten. What if Lafontaine was wrong and Laura would stay this way forever? She didn’t think she could bear not having something so close in reach yet so far away at the same time.

“Damn. How do you know so much about all this memory junk?”

Lafontaine chuckled, glancing over to Perry’s side of their room. “One time I dared Per to jump off the roof and I didn’t think she’d go through with it. Long story short, I spent the summer trying to pull her out of her amnesia.” 

Carmilla all but laughed. This was serious business. Perry hadn’t drank the super strong angler fish blood. A sudden thought struck in her mind, “So if Laura’s staying here, how are the three of you lack wits going to share this tiny room?”

Carmilla already knew the answer before Lafontaine could open their mouth. “Oh no, I am NOT bunking with Little Miss Annie.” She grumbled, pulling her arms across her chest. “Yes, you are. Or else Laura here might stay like that,” They hitched their thumb over their shoulder to point at Laura who was currently guzzling down a beer, something she would never do, while reading the comic. 

A nervous sweat broke out on the back of Carmilla’s neck. “Keep an eye on her for me, okay?” Lafontaine nodded softly as Carmilla turned slowly to leave. “And Carmilla?” She glanced up, locking her eyes onto theirs. “I’ll slip in some blood here and there. Can’t be too unsubtle.” 

That thought had completely slipped Carmilla’s mind. Laura was still a damn vampire. 

Hopefully this Laura wouldn’t be as detective-like and wouldn’t ever find out, because Carmilla knew that’d land on the top of her list of things to bitch about.

“Is that freaky pale emo chic still here?” Laura jeered, her eyes just peeking over the top of the novel. 

Well, tomorrow was going to be fun. 

 

Tuesday, December 8

Carmilla rolled over in bed, swatting at her alarm clock. Waking up on a Tuesday morning at 7:00 AM was pure torture. She was snuggled in one of Laura’s baggy sweatshirts and was currently residing in the brunette’s bed, arms wrapped securely around the yellow pillow. Somehow, if she closed her eyes tight enough and breathed in the scent of Laura, it was almost as if she were there. Almost.

And then Carmilla was shifting and throwing the covers off, not bothering at all to change from the black Silas sweatshirt and the dirty pair of flannel pajama bottoms clinging to her frame. She did manage to tame her wild hair and slip into a pair of loose fitting boots…that also belonged to Laura. 

She didn’t bother to be quiet because Perry had already left the dorm; the blankets on Carmilla’s bed tightly tucked in perfection.

Carmilla padded clumsily to the sink and fished out, no surprise, the TARDIS mug, which she had superglued the night before, accidentally overfilling it with blood in her sleepy state. Half asleep, she hastily chugged it down, not wanting to give this new Laura a chance to bitch at her for being late. 

Swiping up some of her old dusty sketchbooks, splitting wood paintbrushes, and a couple of half-filled paint bottles, Carmilla grumbled something about how this Laura would probably never appreciate art like she did. Why Lafontaine chose art, she’d never know. It was probably the worst subject to try and tutor someone in. Carmilla knew exactly how frustrating it was when a painting didn’t turn out quite the way she’d wanted it to. And adding that history part to it would probably be boring enough to Laura to send her into a deep sleep. But it was the only way at the moment Carmilla had to resurrect the old Laura.

So she gathered the materials under her arms, put on her best ‘I’m going to try really hard’ face and waltzed out the door.

 

By her third knock, the door to Lafontaine and Perry’s dorm swung open and she was met face to face with Laura. “About time,” She grumbled, not bothering to open the door all the way and turned her back to Carmilla. The vampire’s eyebrows knit in displeasure as she gave a sarcastic “Good morning to you too.” 

Just like the night before, Laura’s feet were kicked up and her face was hidden behind another comic that Carmilla couldn’t quite make out. But what she did notice was the growing pile of empty beer cans and snack wrappers beside the bed. “Pretty impressive garbage pile,” Carmilla noted, a bit of concern laced in her words. She sat her art supplies down on the small table in the corner. “Thanks, with all this art work that we’re supposed to be doing, I figured I’d make a sculpture modeled after you.” 

Carmilla bit the inside of her cheek to keep her tongue from spitting a nasty insult right back at her. “Well, you’re off to a great start!” She swung her arm in mock enthusiasm. Laura rolled her eyes and brought the comic closer to her face. Carmilla strode over to the girl and plucked the book from her hands. “Hey!” 

Laura reached out to snatch it back but Carmilla held it over her head just out of reach. “You can have this,” She shook the pages a bit and heard the sharp intake of breath from Laura as one of them threatened to fall out. “Once the lesson is over.” Laura’s eyes narrowed to slits and her nose bunched up in the way that used to make Carmilla’s heart melt. “Fine. Whatever you say Mrs. Bitchy Attitude.”

The way Carmilla’s fist curled allowed Laura’s lips to do the same. This was going to be a long day.

 

Five minutes into art lessons and chill and they had gotten nowhere, nor was it anywhere near chill. Laura was already complaining about why she would ever need to know anything about the Upper Paleolithic period which she kept referring to as the Pathetic period. 

Holding up her phone to show Laura an old picture of animals painted on cave walls, Carmilla began to delve further into her lesson. “These caves at Chauvet-Pont-d’Arc, Lascaux, Pech Merle contain the best known examples of pre-historic paintings and drawings. These evocative renderings of animals and humans employ a complex mixture of naturalism and abstraction.” She waited for Laura’s reaction but Laura was staring off into space, not listening to a word she was saying. Carmilla let out a heavy sigh and snapped her fingers in the brunette’s face. “LAURA.”

Laura’s eyes glided lazily to meet Carmilla’s own. “Yeah, yeah, some boring lecturey stuff about Chavy-Point whatever and his ugly animal drawings.” Carmilla clasped her hands together and drew in a long breath, steadying herself from smacking some sense into the younger girl. 

Putting the history lesson aside, Carmilla set out her paint and a few brushes and flipped to a clean sheet in her sketchbook. “Okay. How about we just paint whatever for today’s lesson, since you don’t seem to be paying attention to anything else.” She dumped the book and paintbrushes in front of Laura and sat down to her own white blank page. Laura groaned and sat back against the chair, arms crossed and pout stuck to her face. Carmilla ignored her and picked up a fairly thin brush, dipping it in black paint she had poured onto a Styrofoam plate.

She began to dance it across the paper, thin lines here, and thicker lines there. They crossed and ran next to each other, overlapped and intertwined. With each stroke after stroke, the lines became part of the bigger picture. Glancing over, halfway through her art piece, Carmilla could see Laura shifting to get a better view of her painting. Carmilla turned slightly, shielding her from the picture and continued to work. Only when she had sat back to admire her work did she realize she could still here the swiping of paintbrush to paper. Carmilla nonchalantly looked over her shoulder at Laura, whose tongue was peeking out of the corner of her mouth like it always did when she was super concentrated. She studied her for a bit, wondering what on earth she was painting so intently. 

Carmilla sat awkwardly, half waiting for her painting to dry and half waiting for Laura to finish. She adored the way hers had turned out. Even if Carmilla hadn’t painted in a few years, she still managed to capture every inch of beauty and put it on paper. 

Maybe she could fill the time with half decent conversations that might help with the amnesia. 

“Soo…what’re you painting?” Laura didn’t look up as she huffed a “None of your business.” Carmilla ran a hand over her face and waited a minute before trying again. “Want to play twenty questions?” She knew that the old Laura absolutely loved the game even though Carmilla thought it was the stupidest way to pass time. Maybe it would offer some valuable insight on this new Laura. “Kinda busy here.” Laura growled through clenched teeth. This was never going to work.

At the brink of giving up hope, a sudden idea struck Carmilla’s mind. “I’ll be right back,” She called over her shoulder, rushing out the door. “Whatever,” Laura grumbled, still hunched over her paper.

Ten minutes later, Carmilla returned, a container of cookies in one hand and Laura’s laptop in the other. Not bothering to knock, because she knew Laura would never get up to let her in again, she simply barged through the door. “Hey.”

Laura grunted in acknowledgement, her head almost on the table for how focused she was. Carmilla approached her slowly. “I brought some cookies…um…and if you want we could take a break and watch Buffy the Vampire Slayer on Netflix…if you want.” The words tumbled from her mouth, entirely too rushed. 

Disgruntled, Laura cast an irritated glare at the hovering dark haired girl. “Is this your idea of some kind of date? Because I hate to break it to you but NO ME GUSTA NADA. ME GUSTA dick. And cookies? Do you know how much sugar are in those things? You probably don’t judging by the way that sweatshirt fits you.” She clucked her tongue and turned back around to her painting. 

It took every muscle in Carmilla’s body to stop herself from hurling the package of cookies at the little smartass’s head. This creation of Laura was nowhere near the real one. She was more like…an anti-Laura; some kind of off-brand demon who hated cookies and actually liked men in a sexual way. Carmilla swore she threw up a bit in her mouth. 

“Fine. You wanna play this little ‘I don’t give a shit about anything’ game?” Carmilla angrily snatched up both sketchbooks, the brushes, Laura’s laptop and the paint, leaving the lonely cookies to rest on the table. She ignored Laura’s raging protests that she hadn’t finished. “Well I can too. See you Thursday,” She hissed, stalking to the door.   
“Oh, and Laura?” Anti-Laura glared at her from her seat at the table, eyes barely visible through their tiny slits. “Your ass must be jealous of how much bullshit just came out of your mouth.”

 

Still fuming when she arrived back at her dorm, Carmilla flopped down in Laura’s bed holding her buttery pillow tightly to her chest. How long would she be able to put up with this? How was Laura ever going to remember if she kept pushing Carmilla away? 

Suddenly remembering that she had yet to see what Laura had been so busy painting, Carmilla stretched down to grab the discarded sketchbook. She swiftly threw open the cover and gasped at the painting in her hands.


End file.
